Evil Eye
by Daredevil fangirl
Summary: Kyoko Mogami has it all-success, fame and love. But when someone casts an evil eye on her success, she stands to lose everything she's worked for.
1. Prologue

_**A/N: I DO NOT OWN SKIP BEAT OR ANY OF IT'S CHARACTERS.**_

_**I REALIZED THAT THERE AREN'T TOO MANY FANFICS OF THIS GENRE. SO I DECIDED TO TRY WRITING A HORROR STORY!**_

_**THOUGH THERE MAY NOT BE MUCH TO REVIEW ABOUT IN THIS PROLOGUE, PLEASE BE PATIENT AND READ TILL THE VERY END. I WILL TRY TO KEEP THE SPOOKS AND CREEPS AS ORIGINAL AS POSSIBLE. SO**__** I CAN GUARANTEE THAT THERE WILL BE NO ROCKING CHAIRS, CREEPY DOLLS AND WHITE CLAD GHOST WOMEN! THIS IS FANFICTION. NOT HOLLYWOOD! ;)**_

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**5'TH NOVEMBER , TOKYO..**

"Ladies and Gentlemen!", the young hostess greeted her audience and the cameras with a smile. "Welcome to your favorite show 'Tokyo Tabloid' with me, Hana! As usual, we have three important things to share with you- gossip, gossip and more gossip!"

The audience cheered and whistled as the cameras faced them and fell silent as Hana continued to speak. Today, we have an upcoming drummer, and a member of Sho Fuwa's band, Kyo Takaki as our special guest! Ladies and gentlemen, give a huge round of applause for our guest tonight!"

There was a polite round of applause as a nervous looking young man stepped up onto the main stage beside the hostess. He managed to give a small smile and waved awkwardly to the audience before Hana ushered him to the couch at the centre stage. He sat down, his hands shaking slightly.

"Well Kyo san,", Hana said flashing him a brilliant, well practiced smile. "You have some very interesting news to share with us today haven't you? "

"Er.. yes..yes..", Kyo replied his eyes darting nervously everywhere. One would feel almost sorry for him. He looked positively terrified!

"Well.. Will you tell the audience what was this 'important piece of information' like you said when you contacted us?" , she pressed him.

Kyo took a deep breath and took the plunge. "As you all know, I'm a drummer in Sho Fuwa's band.", he paused. " I..I however have a confession to make. I've been leaking Fuwa's latest compositions to V..Vie Ghoul in exchange for a large sum of money."

There was a stunned silence at first, as the audience slowly registered what the young drummer had just admitted. The silence was followed by angry cries of outrage. Hana watched them, clearly enjoying herself. She put on a look of pretend horror and disgust as she leaned closer to Kyo for her next question. "now Kyo san,", she said in a grieved voice," that wasn't a very...nice thing to do was it? Betraying the very band that gave you your big break?"

Her words had the desired effect as Kyo's face turned red with rage. "FUWA ALWAYS TREATED ME LIKE SHIT!" , he yelled defensively. "In fact, it's not just me! It's also the rest of the band members! So he got lucky with a few hit albums! That doesn't give him the right to treat us like dirt! He's nothing but an arrogant PRICK! Vie ghoul were the ones who offered me a big break into showbiz if I helped them regain their old number one spot! They offered me money, fame and everything I-", but the rest of his speech was drowned out by shouts from the audience like 'scum!' and 'backstabber!' .

Hana licked her lips in pleasure as she always did when she anticipated mayhem. She smiled and stood up, facing the audience with her arms raised to gain their attention. "Please do calm down everyone.", she said smoothly. " We all know Kyo made a mistake. It may seem selfish now, but don't forget ,he realized his mistake and had the guts to actually confess to all of you. And as far as I am concerned, that is not the character of a 'scum'."

There was a murmur of general agreement from the audience when she said this. Hana smiled wryly to herself_. Audiences_, she thought, are _so_ easy to manipulate. _One simple word from my side and they are immediately on Kyo's side..the question is how are they going to react to what I have to say now?_

She turned to Kyo, who was trembling like a leaf. A cruel smile curved on her lips as she put forward her next question.

"By the way, Kyo, there is something I'm sure is of great interest to all of us.. Why did you confess at all? Everything was going perfectly according to your plan... Your pay was good and had you not confessed, you might soon have been rich, and famous.."

Kyo began shaking even more violently when he heard this question. "I..I guess you can call it guilt?", he joked nervously. "I was greedy, I admit it, b..but er..I realized I was wrong and decided to..er tell everyone the truth a..and how sorry I was.."

Hana gave him a sweet smile, which was more like a leer. "Now, now, are you sure that's exactly why you decided to confess? Don't be afraid Kyo. You've been so honest and truthful so far..a little more honesty can't hurt can it?"

Kyo remained silent. His face had the obstinate look of a cornered victim ready to fight to death. "I already told you the truth. I really felt guilty about what I was doing! That's the whole truth!", he said stubbornly.

Hana's smile widened. She loved torturing weak minds like this. The more they resisted, the more fun it was to crack them..

She leaned forward and whispered, dramatically," Are you sure no one asked you to confess?"

Kyo gave a start when he heard her words but waved it away." No one knew what I was doing. Who would make me confess?", he asked defensively, now on his guard.

"Oh, I don't know!", Hana said cheerfully." Maybe a friend, an acquaintance, or..a blackmailer on the phone..?" she paused to enjoy the dramatic effect of her words.

She wasn't disappointed . Kyo gave a small jump, his face now as white as sheet. "H...how did you know?", he blurted out.

Hana gave a triumphant smile. " So it is true! I have my ways of knowing Kyo san!", she said with a small laugh. She turned to the cameras and audience. "Ladies and gentlemen, there is another interesting fact that I would like to share with you."

Her audience was definitely interested as they listened to her attentively.

"Yesterday evening, we received an anonymous call from a woman. She said that the information that Kyo wanted to reveal information to the press out of pressure. She had blackmailed him into doing so as she had a certain..er..'compromising' video of him which might possibly destroy his career. However, she had changed her mind about keeping her side of the bargain and sent us the tape anyway. "

The audience was very quiet now. Kyo had aged a hundred years in just a few minutes. His eyes were wide and mad looking and his mouth opened and closed feebly like a fish out of water." You..you can't!", he protested hoarsely. "She promised.. not to show..."

Hana turned to him, feeling a sadistic pleasure coarse through her. She was itching to release the tape immediately, but wanted to prolong the pleasure of torturing this weak minded young man..."Do you know who this black mailer is Kyo?", she asked kindly." Can you possibly disclose our informant's name?"

Kyo gulped as he nodded." Who is it?", she asked, barely controlling her excitement.

Kyo opened his mouth and closed it again, his eyes once more darting here and there looking for a way to escape.

"Don't be afraid Kyo!", Hana urged, with a touch of impatience." Who was it?"

Kyo hung his head with an air of defeat. "I'm not very sure if it was really her..", he mumbled."it's i..impossible..but I don't know who el-"

Kyo stopped short as he stared straight ahead at nothing in particular. His eyes were wide with a terror that knew no bounds. Suddenly he let out a terrible scream as he clutched his throat and fell to the floor, writhing.

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The audience watched with fascinated horror. His face was starting to turn purple when a group of crewman rushed on stage to wrench the hysterical man's hand off his throat. Somehow, the feeble young man seemed to have developed superhuman strength to resist their combined efforts. His face slowly turned blue and finally he stopped moving...

A tall, powerful looking young man switched off the programme and turned to glare at the Vie Ghoul band members before him. "_Well?!",_ he barked scathingly." _This_ was your 'brilliant' plan to defeat Fuwa? Your 'brilliant' plan just blew up in our faces didn't it? The next time I hire a band, I'll look for one with brains!"

Vie ghoul glared at their agency's boss mutinously. After the talk show, the mysterious tape had been released. It turned out to be a sex tape of Kyo and a married woman. The boss had every reason to be furious. The woman in the tape was his wife.

"We didn't know this would happen boss.", Miroku said shortly. "I'm sorry about your wife but-"

"_Sorry?_!", the boss exploded, banging the table with his fist. "Oh, you'd better be sorry. It's not just the agency, but also my married life that your stupid band managed to spectacularly drag into the limelight! Vie ghoul! Hmmmph! You should be called the beagles!"

Reino suddenly chuckled when he heard that. The boss turned to him with narrowed eyes." Something funny about what I just said Reino?", he asked, his eyes narrowing.

Reino smirked as he replied," Oh, nothing sir. Just remembering a funny memory.."

Miroku glared at him. _Will you get serious?,_ he mouthed to Reino. But Reino merely shrugged. The boss looked incensed by his attitude. "Well you'd better keep hanging onto that memory pretty boy, because what I have to say next is not so funny!", he snarled." You- are- fired! The whole lot of you! Out!"

"_Fired?_", Miroku spluttered indignantly. "You can't fire us! It's not our fault your wife was messing around! We have a contract!"

The boss's eyes gleamed dangerously. "Damn the contract Miroku!", he spat. "I'm terminating your contract now! Your band is finished! After this stunt, I don't think you'll have a single fan left in Japan!"

"You can't do that!", miroku said furiously." You can't just terminate a contract! You'll never get away with it!"

"Oh can't I just?", the boss asked, for the first time smiling with satisfaction. "Don't underestimate the power of money Miroku! I could have the whole lot of you murdered in my office and still get away with it! Now get the hell out of my office before I do just that! Out!"

Miroku looked as though he was going to protest some more but Reino and the other band members took firm hold of his arm and steered him out if the room before he could say something stupid like," Yeah kill us! Like we care!"

The moment they were out of the building,miroku shook them off violently. He was absolutely livid. Their musical career was finished! And all because of that stupid pipsqueak Kyo_! Lucky for him he's dead or else I would have killed him in the worst manner possible!,_ he thought grimly.

"Don't blame Kyo alone for what happened Miroku.", Reino said shortly. "You know that even you lot are to blame."

Miroku turned at him angrily. "What do you mean that it's all our fault?" , he spat." This plan worked before. So how is it our fault?"

"it is your fault.", Reino corrected him." I warned you guys again and again. it was stupidity to try the same trick twice. We were lucky once, but luck can change..."

"Never mind the philosophy bit! Why didn't you back us up back then? And how can you be so cool about what just happened?", miroku yelled back." What do we do _now _Reino?"

Reino shrugged indifferently. "I don't know miroku, and frankly speaking, I just don't care.", he said expressionlessly. You lot are free to do what you like, but I've had enough. I'm tired of this life, tired of trying to defeat Fuwa, tired of the whole fucking show business! I'm returning to my quiet life, and be left free to do what I like for a change. So goodbye!"

And with that he turned and left behind forever a very stupified vie ghoul's band.

Reino walked around the city, bored out of his mind. He had absolutely nothing to do! Music had been boring, Fuwa had livened up his rut for a while and Kyoko had totally aroused his attention. _But what's left now? _He thought sourly as he remembered that stupid headline nearly and year ago which announced that his favorite toy was now dating that..that beast Ren Tsuruga! _What the hell does she see in him anyway?_ He thought irritably.

Reino suddenly stopped walking as a thought occurred to him. _Speaking of supernatural_..  
He pulled out a pearl chain from his pocket and smiled at it reminiscently . Thanks to this chain he had often caught little spirits, harmless ones and even vengeful ones..like Kyoko's grudge spirit.. _Shame!_ He thought regretfully. _I should never have let it go.. It was a nice pet.. But I can have some more fun with this chain.. _

Reino was psychic. He had powers and he knew it. Many of them were yet to be unlocked..Powers which would make him invincible..unbeatable..and give him the ability to control and even defeat spirits..a feat he could not accomplish unless he wore the chain around his neck. And this chain which he always kept in his hand was the key. The key to black magic, white magic and control over spirits..

He entered his apartment lost in his thoughts. _Why not?_ He finally decided_. It would be a refreshing change and he would be doing something that he enjoyed..Torturing_…

He put on the chain as a permanent acceptance of his powers. He vaguely remembered his mother's warning to keep well away from black magic, never to use the spirits for his own good.. But he ignored her warning. Just because she had died a painful death, didn't mean he would face the same fate.

Reino suddenly felt his body go rigid. To his horror, the chain tightened around his neck, choking him. He struggled for breath but it only tightened harder, marking his neck permanently. Just as suddenly it had tightened, the chain loosened. Reino fell to the floor coughing and wheezing as he panted for breath. But his relief was short lived as he felt a small growing pain within himself.

The pain grew bigger and bigger with time, making him wish he were dead, until he felt a tremendous explosion inside him. He fell on his knees coughing out blood and screamed in pain as he felt repeated explosions within himself. The air around him crackled as he felt an increasing sense of power with every growing pain.

* * *

**THE SAME NIGHT IS A PRIVATE HOSPITAL IN TOKYO..**

The nurse covered Kyo's body with a sheet as the doctor wrote a report.

NAME: Kyo Takaki

AGE: 23

CAUSE OF DEATH: Suicide (Strangulation)

SPECIAL REMARKS:

1)Left wrist crushed. Cause unknown. Suspected due to be a heavy object.

2)Nail marks noted on same wrist.

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A/**N:- **

**TO ALL TALK SHOW HOSTS OR TALK SHOW ASPIRANTS- HANA WAS INSPIRED FROM DOLORES UMBRIDGE AND RITA SKEETER AND HER MANIPULATION OF THE AUDIENCE FROM MARK ANTHONY. **

**BTW, I DIDN'T KILL REINO.**

**FINAL NOTE- WHAT YOU SEE IS NOT WHAT YOU GET IN THIS STORY!**

**REVIEW PLZ!**


	2. A new 'home'

**A/N: THANK YOU FOR READING THIS STORY EVERYONE! AND A _BIG_ THANK YOU TO REGULUSGAL, ADDCD2SEPHIROTH, SUBARU, VOIDY AND CRAZYGREEKWEIRDO FOR YOUR REVIEWS! THIS CHAPTER HAS MORE ACTION AND SPOOKS, SO PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK! AND IF YOU HAVE ANY IDEAS FOR SPOOKS, YOU CAN GIVE ME YOUR SUGGESTIONS AND I'LL TRY TO FIT THEM INTO THE STORY!**

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"So what's it like?", Ren asked Kyoko on the phone. Kyoko flopped down on a couch with a sigh as she tried to describe the furnished apartment she had just moved into.

"It's pretty big..", she admitted. " In fact I'm surprised the rent is so low. The kitchen is just a little smaller than yours and the other rooms are..yeah it's perfect!"

"So what's the problem?", he pressed her. He didn't need to explain how he knew something was wrong. He just knew, from her unenthusiastic tone that the apartment was far from perfect in her opinion.

Kyoko sighed, leaning back on the couch. "It's not home!", she said gloomily. "I miss my room! My dear old cozy room at the darumuya! Where I could study, act, rehearse my lines and sleep comfortably, feeling at home! And I miss your bedro-", she broke off mid way blushing.

"Yeah?", he said teasingly. "What else was it that you miss?"

"Don't tease me Ren!", Kyoko cried, half embarrassed and half amused. "I'm having a serious issue settling into my new 'home'!"

It was nearly three years since Kyoko joined the showbiz industry. Only three years, and she was already one of the most promising stars in Japan. Her role as Natsu has earned her rave reviews and landed her with more roles than she could imagine. But fame had a price.

Though at first she had enjoyed the new found attention she received from the press, it soon became irksome to find reporters outside the darumuya nearly everyday. Therefore, the president, for the convenience of the darumuya , as well as for her own safety, put forward the idea of Kyoko moving to a new place in a safe and private location.

She now lived in a complex, and much nearer to Ren's place. Though the actor would have preferred her to move in with him, Kyoko had argued that it would only attract more attention from the press. So she had secretly moved into the fully furnished rented apartment.

"If it's that bad how about I come over to your place tonight?" Ren asked casually. Kyoko smiled at the faint longing in his voice. "You're _always_ welcome to my new place Ren, but..", she said a little doubtfully.

"I'll make sure no one sees me", he quickly assured her. "Once this shoot is done I'll be right over. I won't spend the night there if you don't want me to , but I really want to have a look at your place."

"All right then.", Kyoko replied smiling, already counting the minutes. She yawned as she hung up the phone, tired after her day's work. But her talk with Ren cheered her up considerably. She was glad Ren had called up and agreed to come over. They were usually so busy with their work that it was hard to squeeze in enough time to spend together. But tonight, that wasn't the only reason she wanted him by her side.

Kyoko usually didn't get jittery, but tonight, in her new apartment, she was. The moment she had stepped into the flat, she felt a cold, unfriendly atmosphere about the place. There was no warmth, no homeliness and no coziness anywhere. In fact, Kyoko had never felt more unwelcome in a place before. She felt as though there was a hostile presence..a presence that didn't want her in this house at any cost.

Kyoko would have turned down this apartment immediately but it happened to be the only one within her budget. The reason she has opted for a rented apartment was because most of the houses on sale were way beyond her budget. Until she found a house for a reasonable price, she was forced to live here.

She went to her bedroom and put on her night clothes. She left her cell phone by the bed, switched off the lights and went to the drawing room. Kyoko turned on the TV to watch the news. After a few minutes, the show Tokyo Tabloid came on. She wasn't usually interested in gossip shows, but there wasn't anything better to watch.

Her eyes flickered with interest and surprise when the surprise guest turned out to be a member of Sho's band. As she listened to Kyo's confession, she felt mild irritation at the sound of Vie Ghoul. She hated their vocalist, Reino, one of the few men who could truly terrify her. He had stalked and nearly raped her a few years ago on the sets of dark moon and had threatened to destroy her career by leaking the news to the press.

_Well..,_ she thought with satisfaction, _he's going to get what he deserves now! That stupid beagle!_

Suddenly, Kyoko felt as though the air around her had turned very cold. She shivered and wrapped her arms around herself, looking around for the source of the cold wind. _Now how did that happen?,_ she muttered nervously when she saw that the windows were shut. _Maybe the air conditioner broke dow_-Kyoko froze mid sentence when she suddenly felt an icy gust of wind down her neck.

She turned quickly, and looked around panicking. "Wha..what was that?", she gulped. It felt as though someone with an extremely cold breath was breathing down her her neck. She slowly stood up and looked around the room warily. The room seemed to be getting colder every minute... But there was something else that felt different about the place.

Kyoko felt as though she wasn't alone in the room...there was something else..something or someone..a cold, evil and menacing presence..She looked at the corridor leading towards the bedrooms, shrouded in complete darkness and shivered at the thought of walking along it.

The best place for her, she decided, would be outside until Ren returned. She walked towards the door and stopped, frowning in confusion.

"What the?", she muttered. "I could have sworn I left the key in the lock!"

She stood there, hands on her hips, trying to remember where she could have possibly left the keys. _The bedroom!,_ she suddenly realized, remembering that she had gone in there to leave her suitcase. _I must have left it there!_

With a defeated air ,she looked at the passage to the inner rooms, which now looked as though it was miles long. She took a deep breath and began marching in a determined fashion along the corridor, heaving a sighing relief when she reached the bedroom and turned the lights back on.

It was much warmer here in the bedroom. Feeling braver now, Kyoko decided that the air conditioner was faulty and made up her mind to get a repair man to fix it as soon as possible.

"Now where did I leave the keys?", she asked herself looking around the bedroom. She began to search the entire room from top to bottom but no success. "Where the _hell_ did I put them?", she asked herself again feeling thoroughly frustrated.

She turned to the attached bathroom and stared. There, beside tooth brush stand on the shelf, was the key!

"When did I leave it in the bathroom?", she asked aloud in amazement. She went into the bathroom and was about to take the keys when the door shut behind her loudly.

Kyoko jumped in fright, and turned around quickly, her heart beating loudly. She took a tentative step towards the door and pulled. Or tried to.. Because no matter how hard she tried, the door would not open.

" Help!", Kyoko yelled desperately, feeling like a trapped rat. She was locked inside a bathroom which was locked inside an apartment! "Help me out!"

She pulled the door handle making the door rattle dangerously, but it remained stubbornly shut. Kyoko dropped her hands feeling an increasing sense of panic and terror grow within her.

_What is happening here?,_ she thought, frightened. As if on cue, Kyoko began to feel that familiar atmosphere of chilliness and evil in the bathroom. She turned slowly towards the mirror and watched in horror an disbelief as it turned misty in the chill.

But what frightened her even more was the fact that the keys were no longer on the shelf!

POP!

Kyoko jumped, as she felt a familiar popping sound at her head. She stared in amazement at her 'grudge spirit', floating down, it's eyes half closed. Suddenly it's eyes widened in fright. It gave out a frightened "Squeeee!" and flew straight down the door.

Kyoko turned around, startled when she heard a sudden cracking sound behind her. It was the mirror, which looked like a frozen lake. At the corner of the mirror was a crack.

Kyoko felt her racing heart stop for a moment as she saw the crack grow bigger and bigger..till the entire mirror was filled with cracks.

Suddenly, the mirror shattered into a million pieces, sending shards of glass everywhere. Kyoko screamed as she raised her arms to protect herself. She braced herself, expecting to feel the glass cut her arms. But nothing happened.

Kyoko slowly put down her hands, looking warily at the mirror, only to find it intact.

_Am I going mad?,_ she wondered, as she began to seriously freak out. _I'm sure I did not imagine the mirror breaking!_

Meanwhile, it had gotten colder in the bathroom. Kyoko felt as though the air around her had frozen solid and was slowly closing in on her..trapping her..engulfing her completely, before she suffocated. Kyoko tried taking in deep breaths, but it was getting more and more difficult to breathe in the bathroom. Gasping and wheezing, she began to pull at the door urgently. "Help!", she croaked."Someone..anyone.."

She was starting to black out. She felt as if something was stuck in her throat, preventing her from breathing easily. Suddenly, the door opened miraculously. Kyoko stumbled out of the bathroom and immediately collapsed onto the floor, gulping in air. She almost had a heart attack when she felt a pair of arms around her but sighed in relief when she saw who it was.

"Ren!", she cried in relief, as she flung her arms around him. "How..how did you get here? I don't want to stay here a minute longer! Thi..this place is h..h..haunted!"

Ren wrapped his arms protectively around her. He easily lifted her and put her on the bed. "what happened?", he asked her, sounding annoyed. "I rang the bell so many times but no response! I started to get worried and called your landlord for an extra key. And now I find you here, acting strange, talking about haunted houses!"

Kyoko glared at him, her fears evaporating in an instant. "I'm NOT acting strange!", she retorted hotly. And she told him all that had just happened. She felt a mixture of disbelief and anger when Ren started to laugh, once she was finished.

"Honestly kyoko! Just what horror show were you watching just now?"

Kyoko just saw red. "I am being serious Ren!", she yelled, shaking him away roughly. She noticed the sudden darkening of his eyes, but she was too angry and too frightened to care. The one person whom she thought would help her was refusing point blank to accept her story! She stood up in a rage and started to leave the bedroom when she felt a vice like grip on her wrist.

"Let me g-" she was about to snap when she felt Ren pull her down violently and pin her against the sheets. He towered over her, a maniacal glint in his eyes. "Never-speak-to-me-like-that-ever-again!", he threatened her in a low and dangerous voice. "Don't ever try to test my temper Kyoko! You don't know what I'm capable of!"

Kyoko struggled to get free but Ren was too strong for her. His fingers sank gripped her so tight that Kyoko winced in pain. "Let me go Ren!", she snarled. "What's gotten into you? You're hurting me! Let me go!"

But Ren was gone. Kyoko suddenly felt afraid of the man leaning over her with a strangely hungry look on his face. _Something is wrong!,_ she thought panicking. _Something feels different! I've never been so afraid of Ren before.._

Ren roughly slid his arms beneath her back as he lowered his mouth down to hers. Kyoko cried out in pain as his nails dug deep into her skin. She cried out again when he bit her tongue hard and roughly gained admission into her mouth. He kissed her savagely, torturing her tongue with nips and bites, making her whimper in pain.

"Stop it! Please, I'm begging you!", Kyoko sobbed as she tried to push him away. He let her go, but was far from being done. In lightening speed, he undressed himself and towered over the Kyoko's tiny, cowering frame.

"You wore this for me?", his eyes lustfully taking in the red bra and pajamas she had on, before tearing them off her. If Kyoko had been afraid earlier, it was nothing compared to what she was feeling now.

He grabbed a fistful of her hair and pulled her head back painfully before attacking her neck. Kyoko struggled in pain as he bit her neck savagely, leaving kiss marks all over. His other hand was marking her back, as his nails scratched her, digging deep into her skin, making her bleed.

"No!", Kyoko screamed. "Stop it I said!"

But she might as well have been talking to the walls. Ren was all over her body now, bruising her back, biting her breasts, hurting her whole body, and bleeding her...He was like a starved wild animal. The way he was attacking her made her feel like a wounded sheep being attacked by a lion.

He stopped his torture for a moment. But only a moment..because he had something worse in store for her...Kyoko shrieked in agony when she felt Ren ram his large manhood inside her. He showed her no mercy, as he thrust into her repeatedly, each time harder than the other. Kyoko closed her eyes , trying to shut out the pain...wishing she was dead..she had never felt pain like this before. Not just the physical pain, but the pain of the knowledge that the man she loved so much was torturing her like this.

She felt a mounting pain between her legs and screamed when she felt the most agonizing explosion inside her.

"NOOOOOO!", she yelled, half crazed with pain, her back arching as she clutched the sheets. "Make it stop! Please make it stop!"

She felt another pain, as though a white hot knife had just sliced her from within. She felt Ren finally withdraw and lay there shuddering. Ren got up without a word and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.

Kyoko felt tainted.. She simply could not imagine how Ren could have inflicted such pain on her. She wasn't a virgin and even when they had made love the first time, Ren had been so gentle, that she had never felt any pain at all!

Kyoko got up slowly, wincing as her whole body ached. She glanced down at herself and was shocked to find her entire body, cut, bruised and bleeding... She noticed the blood between her thighs and felt herself reeling even more..

_Why?_ She thought brokenly. _Why did you do this Ren?_ She remembered his gentle kisses, touch and caresses, his uncanny ability to drive her wild with desire.. Yet tonight, it felt like nothing short of rape.

She stood up and managed to put on robe. Suddenly her cell phone rang. Kyoko looked wearily at her phone and picked it up to see who was calling. She stiffened when she saw the name on the screen..

_Ren tsuruga calling_.

Kyoko frowned in disbelief and answered the call, wondering if Ren had lost his phone.

"Hello Kyoko!", a cheerful voice spoke into the phone.

Kyoko froze. "Ren?", she asked in disbelief.

"That's right!", he answered her."I'm sorry I'm late! The car conked out in the middle of the road! Luckily I managed to get it repaired..I'm almost at your place now.."

But kyoko was not listening. She suddenly noticed something tiny lying on her bed. She looked at it closely and felt her heart stop for the millionth time that evening. It was the grudge kyoko.. But completely unrecognisable now as it had slashes and bruises all over it, similar to the ones on Kyoko.

The grudge Kyoko made a feeble motion and finally crumbled into dust before Kyoko's eyes.

"Hello, Kyoko?", Ren asked her uncertainly. "You there?"

But something else had now captured Kyoko's attention . She stood, petrified, her eyes now on the bathroom door which had opened a tiny crack. A pair of eyes was peering at her eerily through the crack. They had a malevolent glint that frightened Kyoko more than anything else.

She screamed and rushed out of the bedroom making her way to the door. To her surprise, the keys were in the keyhole, as she remembered leaving them. She hurriedly unlocked the door, and ran out of the apartment.

She stood there, panting before the elevator, and slammed a fist against the button. There was a 'ding' sound of the elevator arriving and Kyoko stopped when she saw Ren stepping out, looking just as frightened as she felt.

"What happened Kyoko?", he asked her urgently. "Why did you scream?"

Kyoko collapsed in his arms, sobbing in relief as his familiar scent engulfed her. "I just got raped by a monster who looks like you!", she replied, in between sobs..


	3. Ghost of an injury

Kyoko clung to Ren , shaking with fear. She felt an odd sense of Deja vu in Ren's arms. A monster had held her like this and raped her..a monster who looked like Ren.. And a monster who had just killed the grudge Kyoko proving that it was definitely not human..

So what was the guarantee that the man before her was not that monster again?

Kyoko's mind went back to that moment when Ren's clone had hugged her. The minute he held her, at the very back of her mind, something screamed at her that this was not quite right...something was terribly terribly wrong. And now she knew what it was..

_Mental_ _note_ _to_ _self_!, Kyoko thought grimly. _Ren clones don't carry his scent!_

She closed her eyes, relieved as she breathed in Ren's comforting scent deeply. A scent that she was very familiar with..a mere whiff of which made her feel light headed and warm and fuzzy and comforted.. _I could bottle this scent and use it whenever I need.., _she thought dreamily, momentarily forgetting that she had just run out of a haunted house.

"Kyoko!", Ren's urgent voice interrupted her thoughts, bringing her back to reality. " I'm here now with you Kyoko! Tell me clearly now what happened there. Why did you scream?"

His arms held her comfortingly as he looked at her feeling extremely worried. Kyoko realized that he must not have caught fully what she had just said about 'being raped by a monster who looked like him'.

She opened her mouth and was about to repeat what she had said when she let out a sudden gasp of pain. Her nails dug painfully into Ren's shoulders and he looked at her in alarm.

Her eyes were half closed with agony. "Aaahhh..unnggghh!", she cried out giving Ren a heart attack.

"Kyoko!", he yelled in shock and alarm. Without a moment's delay he carried the semi conscious woman in his arms and banged the button for the elevator. As he waited in the elevator, he looked down anxiously at Kyoko. She looked normal except for the intense pain on her face which had turned dangerously pale.

Ren gently kissed her forehead. "I'm taking you to the hospital okay?", he told her reassuringly. Kyoko looked at him through half closed eyes, not really taking in what was happening. Just as suddenly as it had appeared, the pained expression on Kyoko's face disappeared and she stopped breathing momentarily, making Ren fear the worst.

Suddenly her eyes widened with fear. Behind Ren ,was his double, his nails abnormally long..and blood dripping from them. The Ren clone gave her a hideous leer which she hoped never to see on the _real_ Ren's face, licked it's fingers with a kind of ghoulish relish and disappeared.

Ren looked around confused as to what had frightened Kyoko but could see nothing. The moment they reached the ground floor he sprinted to his car in the parking and gently put in his now unconscious girlfriend into the car. He rushed to the hospital not noticing the sudden shiver that Kyoko gave out of chilliness..

Ren paced the floor, nervously waiting for the doctor's report. He remembered their last phone conversation. Kyoko had sounded rather jumpy..before she'd let out that unearthly shriek.

_What exactly is happening with her?_, Ren thought wildly, running his fingers through his hair.

He looked up eagerly when the doctor came out if the examination room.

"There is absolutely nothing to worry about Mr. Tsuruga.", she told him with a reassuring smile. "Mogami san is in perfectly good health physically. She's just under a bit of stress I believe, which may be the reason for her hallucinations."

The smile of relief that had appeared on Ren's face disappeared at the word 'hallucinations'.  
"Hallucinations?", he asked frowning. "What exactly makes you think so doctor?"  
"Mogami san mumbled something about being raped, while in a semi conscious state.", the doctor replied. "However, her body showed no signs of physical assault of any kind on examination. I dismissed it thinking she wasn't in her right state of mind but even when she was fully conscious she said the same insists there are scratches and bruises all over her body."

She sounded rather sorry for Kyoko and the anxious looking man before her.

"Can I see her now?", Ren asked the doctor. She nodded and without a word he entered the doctor's room.

Kyoko lay on a bed, in hospital attire, staring up at the ceiling, her once cheerful face alarmingly pale and unhappy. She jumped when the door opened, her face breaking into a smile when Ren came over and sat on the chair next to her.

He held her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze as he kissed her gently. Kyoko sighed with relief against his lips. "You'll believe me won't you Ren?", she asked in a trembling voice. "that doctor doesn't believe me but I really was attacked!"

She was starting to get hysterical so Ren gently took her in his arms shushing her.

"The doctor will discharge you soon and then we can go home and talk about this okay?", he whispered in her ears gently. She nodded against his chest and he kissed her forehead before getting up.

She caught his hand and looked at him fearfully. "Please not my apartment!", she begged him.

Ren was stunned by the transformation of her face. She looked positively terrified. The look on her face made him want to lock her in his room and protect her for the rest of his life.

"Kyoko?", he asked her cautiously and was about to sit down beside her again but she pushed him away.

"Please go and complete the paperwork.", she insisted. "The sooner I get discharged the better!"

Ren got up reluctantly and went to visit the doctor. In half an hour, Kyoko was discharged and Ren drove to his apartment looking at the silent woman beside him every now and then anxiously.

When they were finally in his apartment, Kyoko borrowed Ren's pajamas .

"Can we talk after this?", Ren asked her quietly. She nodded and was about to go and change when Ren let out a sharp cry of pain.

"Ren!", Kyoko ran to his side. He was clutching his arm, but he didn't look too much in pain now.

"Roll up your sleeves!", Kyoko ordered frantically, though her fingers were already pushing up the cloth up his arm. She stared at the deep red cut on his arm.

"When did this happen?", she asked examining the wound. It looked fresh.

"Just now obviously!", Ren replied in a slightly puzzled voice. "I felt it hurt just now didn't I?"

Kyoko stared at him, surprised at his lack of concern for his wound. "_How_ do you think it happened?", she asked impatiently.

Ren shrugged. "I guess it was a cramp or something.", he said .

Kyoko stared at him incredulously. "You call this a cramp?", the surprise evident in her voice. "Ren , this is what people normally call a cut or an injury! In fact I think it is a serious injury!"

Ren stared at his arm and back at her. "Is there supposed to be something on my arm?", he asked her, sounding a little concerned, but not for himself. "Because I can't see any injury on my arm Kyoko!"

His eyes looked genuinely puzzled and worried about her. Kyoko dismissed any thoughts she had about Ren messing around with her when suddenly an idea struck her.

She slowly rolled up one of her sleeves and raised her bruised arm before Ren.

"What do you think ?", she asked him seriously.

"Of what?", asked a completely bewildered Ren .

"Of this!", Kyoko shook her arm violently before his face. But Ren still looked blank.

"Of your arm Kyoko?", he asked cautiously. "I think it's pretty good, but then I'd say that for your whole body."

Kyoko sighed resignedly. "I'll just get changed now.", she said monotonously and made her way to the bedroom.

Ren looked after her worriedly, wondering if he had said something that he shouldn't have said. And why was Kyoko acting so strange?

In the privacy if the bedroom, Kyoko slowly took of her clothes and looked down at her body. THe cuts and bruises were fresh on her skin, and to make things worse, there was a new one.

Kyoko frowned in confusion at the slash marks on the left upper part if her chest. The slashes were not too deep, but deep enough to bleed..and similar to the mark she saw on Ren's arm.

"When did these appear now?", she muttered to herself wearily. She closed her eyes and tried hard to remember...it couldn't have been in the apartment. She would have noticed it then. Then when could-

Kyoko's eyes flew open in panic when she suddenly remembered the excruciating pain she had felt on her chest just as she was going to tell Ren about her encounter with his clone. It had felt as though someone had just pierced her heart with a million needles and was slowly dragging them across her skin.

She put a tentative finger on the wounds and immediately let go as she felt a white hot pain on the same spot.

Kyoko decided then and there she needed a shower immediately! She wanted to cleanse herself off the monster who had tried to mark her as his own.

After fifteen minutes in the shower, Kyoko looked down at her wounds with satisfaction. Though still visible, they were only like faint scars. But the slash marks, she noted sadly, remained the same.

As she dried her hair, Kyoko caught sight of herself on the mirror and stopped dead.

The Kyoko looking back at her was completely free of all scars and bruises.

_Is this why no one believes me?, she_ started to think in panic. _Am I the only one who can see the marks on my body? Or on Ren's injury for that matter?_

Kyoko dressed up, feeling rather numb. Somehow, she had a feeling that telling Ren the truth was not a good idea. When she had tried the first time, she's landed in the hospital. The second time, Ren's arm was slashed. Wasn't that a warning to her? A warning never to repeat to anyone what had happened to her in that apartment?

Kyoko had never felt more frightened in her life before. Whatever supernatural forces were at work, they could hurt, or even worse , kill Ren and leave no traces behind. No. She had to just pretend as though nothing was wrong.

_Which is going to be pretty hard to do after all that's happened tonight._, she thought wryly.

Ren looked up when the door opened and Kyoko walked in. She sat beside him and put her hand on his, an apologetic look on her face.

"Ren,", she began." I know I've not been..quite..normal tonight, but well...it's just that I'm a little stressed out."

She paused and gave a sigh, acting out a stressed patient to perfection.

"I haven't been sleeping well lately, being busy with early morning shoots and everything and I just made it worse by watching a horror movie two days ago!"

"A horror movie?", Ren asked surprised. "How does that come into the picture?"

Kyoko laughed. "Oh, you know how I can sometimes be when it comes to a particularly grotesque horror movie. I didn't get any sleep after that experience and when I did manage to fall asleep I'd started to have horrible nightmares about it! I'm so afraid of falling asleep now and as if it wasn't bad enough I'm even starting to imagine that there are ghosts all around! My new apartment just gives me the creeps, what with my being alone and all..I had a weird kind of hallucination that time outside the lift and when I was talking to you on the phone and just freaked out! I..fainted out of shock. I know I should have told you this earlier, but you were busy with your filming in Kyoto and I didn't want you to worry."

She looked down at her lap and remained silent. She didn't dare meet his eyes and waited with bated breath for his response.

_I should have thought this out more carefully! _She berated herself silently. _There's no way he'll buy an outrageous explanation like that!_

To her surprise, Ren squeezed her hand reassuringly. She looked up at him and found him smiling warmly at her.

"Well I'm here now with you right?", he said gently. "You don't have to go back to that place anymore Kyoko. I'll make sure you take things easy and get enough sleep. You don't have to be frightened of anything..or anyone anymore. I'll protect you."

Kyoko looked up sharply. Just for a moment, there was something about his tone that seemed to give his words a double meaning. _Frightened of anything._.did that mean he did not believe her? However she dismissed her fears. He looked pretty convinced and that was how she wanted it to remain.

She was taken aback when Ren suddenly placed a little black box before her.

"Kyoko,", he said seriously. "I meant ever word that I just said. You never have to go back to that apartment again. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?"

He opened the box to reveal a beautiful diamond ring. It was tiny, but so sparkling and the diamonds were arranged in a pretty pattern that sent Kyoko to her fairyland.

She gaped at the precious jewel before her and could only nod as tears of happiness filled her eyes. Ren smiled and put the ring on her finger.

Kyoko's fears evaporated in an instant when she saw the engagement ring sparkling on her finger. She let out a surprised cry when Ren suddenly swooped her up bridal style and carried her to his bedroom.

He gently lay her on his bed and began to kiss his fiancée. Their tongues engaged in a fierce battle for dominance, their hands wandering around each other unconsciously. Within moments, without knowing how, their clothes lay scattered on the floor. Ren began to trail kisses down her neck while his hands pleasures her breasts. Kyoko moaned and bit back a gasp as pain shot through her body. She realized, in panic that she was sore after the brutal way Ren's clone had raped her. She couldn't continue tonight, as much as she would love to..

She gently pushed away Ren, and cupped his face in her hands. "Ren..you know I'd love to have you make love to me tonight..it's just that, once we start, we don't stop and I really must get some sleep now right?", she said jokingly.

Ren chuckled and rested his head on her chest. "Right. I'm sorry.", He said apologetically. "it's just that I always get carried away when I'm with you. But you really need some sleep. You've had a tiring night already.." he kissed her chest when Kyoko gave out a faint hiss of pain.

"What's the matter?", he asked concerned.

Kyoko shook her head with a forced smile. "Nothing.", she replied. "I just need to use the bathroom."

She got up quickly and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind her.

She looked down at the wound in her chest. It was redder now and was still smarting.  
Kyoko sighed as she realized that it would hurt everytime when touched. In fact..Kyoko thought with a small frown, the wound looks deeper now.

Kyoko suddenly felt something cut her finger. She held up her hand and saw her ring finger was bleeding. The ring's band was cracked and had cut into her skin. A trickle of blood ran over the diamonds, marring their beauty. She tried to wash it but was not surprised that her efforts were in vain.

She looked at the ring and sighed." I guess that was all that was left to happen tonight..", she muttered grimly to herself.

* * *

Meanwhile Ren was still worried about Kyoko. He had accepted her explanation earlier because her eyes seemed to be silently begging him to do so.

_ But how much longer can I go on without knowing the truth?_, he thought frustrated. _What is she hiding from me?_

For a moment, and he had hated himself for that, he allowed himself to consider the possibility that Kyoko was cheating on him. Maybe there had been someone in the apartment and she had set up the whole drama so that he wouldn't be able to find out?

But he had dismissed that idea immediately. Kyoko would never do something so sneaky and despiscable . She was much too sweet and innocent to act like some kind of a slut. But something else was wrong and he was going to have to wait until she told him herself.

Ren rolled over,lost in his thoughts and paused. He sat up frowning at the window. The curtain was blowing lightly in the wind. There was nothing there now, but he had the strangest feeling that he had seen the silhouette of a woman by the window in the dark.

* * *

Sho read the tabloid with interest. A wide grin spread on his face as he read the news about Kyo. He gave a silent thanks to the unknown black mailer. Thanks to this woman, not only was a leak plugged, but his worries were also gone. Kyo Takaki had been a danger to him and now he was gone for good..

* * *

**A/N: THANKS FOR READING EVERYONE! Sorry about the really late update! New year resolution: to update more regularly!**

**cheers all and plz review!**


	4. A dream visitor

**A/N: Hello everyone! This chapter's a little short, sorry about that. I had something different planned, so that should be up in the next chapter! Anyway, things will progress a little faster then! Cheers all And please review! And once again, thanks a lot, Regulusgal, Math Trix Gray, Addctd2sephiroth, Voidy, Ms. Zala and the Guest reviewer!**

* * *

Kyoko woke up in the middle of the night shivering again. _It's freezing.._, she thought. She felt around the bed and sat up with a start when she realized Ren wasn't there.

"Ren?", she called, looking around. Suddenly someone pushed her back down on the bed.

Kyoko instinctively opened her mouth to scream when she felt a hand slam against her mouth.  
She looked fearfully at the shadowed figure crouching over her body. She couldn't make out who it was in the darkness. All she could see was the long hair hanging from it's sides, lightly tickling her .She could feel that familiar chill emitted by this creature and could have sworn the air around her froze when it began to speak.

"Kyoko Mogami..", it whispered in a low, cold voice. It slowly ran a slender finger down her face, to her chin and finally to her neck. It lightly pressed her adam's apple, but Kyoko momentarily felt a tremendous pressure on her neck. She began gasping for breath the minute the finger left her skin.

"So young..yet so successful..", that chilling voice continued. Kyoko could almost feel the venom dripping from that voice.

" How would it be..", it slipped a slender hand under her pajama, "if I were to snatch away every single thing in your life that gives you happiness?"

Kyoko felt that horribly painful fire course through her body as the monster lightly ran it's fingers over her bruises and lingering over the cut on her chest. She writhed in agony and would have screamed if it had not been for the other hand clamped firmly on her mouth.

"What would it be like if I were to destroy everything precious to you?", it hissed menacingly," your career..your love..your sanity..?"

Kyoko gasped in surprise when the hand left her body and roughly grasped her neck. She caught a glimpse of a horribly bloodied wrist and shut her eyes, quaking with fear. She felt the monster lean closer to her face till their noses touched.

"If I wanted, I could just squeeze the life out of your worthless body, right here and right now..." Kyoko felt the long fingers tighten around her windpipe. "Kyoko Mogami..upcoming superstar would lie dead and forgotten.. But that would be too easy... and too quick!"

Kyoko felt the monster sit up straight and the fingers around her throat loosen.

" I want you to suffer a slow and miserable death.. Like I did..because of you! I want you to die feeling defeated, hopeless, miserable..without a hope in this world. I want you to know loss and suffering...just like I did when I lost the one I loved.. all because of you!"

There was no mistaking now the hatred in the voice. _Do I know this person?_ Kyoko wondered as she struggled to recognize the voice. But the voice sounded so unearthly and so inhuman, that Kyoko was sure she had never met anyone by that voice.

"So be prepared now Kyoko Mogami!", the monster cackled. "Be prepared to travel on the road to hell that you first put me through!"

Kyoko woke up with a start. She sat up slowly, breathing hard as the horrible image of the monster's shadowy figure crouching over her was stuck vividly in her mind. She looked down at Ren's sleeping face, Her eyes wandering to the wound on his cut was so deep..

_What if the monster's words came true_? She wondered. _What if it tries to kill him?_

She raised her left hand, gazing at the diamond twinkling in her finger. The ring was bloodstained and cracked. What if their relationship were to suffer the same fate?

_No_. Kyoko decided determinedly. She didn't care what happened to her, but she was going to protect Ren no matter what. Even if it meant staying away from him.

She got up slowly, so as not to wake ren and went to the next room for a piece of paper and a pen.

_Dear Ren,  
I'm sorry. But we can't go on like this. I loved you. At least I thought I did. But I was wrong. We are wrong for each other Ren, . And nothing can change that. I can't marry you. Once again, I'm sorry for everything. I hope you'll be very happy Ren in future, and find someone who really loves you.  
Kyoko_

Kyoko folded up the letter, wanting to tear it into pieces the minute she finished writing. She was about to take off her ring, paused and changed her mind. She took the letter with her and went back to the bedroom.

Kyoko snuggled up to Ren, who put his arms around her and gazed at his peaceful face tenderly.

_Sleep well ren._. She thought to herself, fixing the memory of that night in her mind forever. _Be_ _my fiancé one more night.._

She choked back a sob, and blinked back her tears fiercely. She didn't know what she was up against, but whatever it was, she was going to fight back...


	5. Stalker turned manager

**A/N: Hi everyone! Once again, thanks to all those who read, and reviewed this story! This chapter is a little longer, more action, so I hope you like it! Please review!**

* * *

Lory stretched himself as he lounged on his chair. He was dressed extravagantly as usual, with a pile of his favourite games on the table. He stared idly across the room, when there was a sudden knock at the door. He hastily put his feet down and sat up straight before saying, "Come in!", commandingly.

The door opened and in walked a young man, smartly dressed in a black suit. He was handsome, in a roguish way, and his blonde hair was tied back in a pony-tail, giving a cooler touch to his otherwise formal attire. Behind the glasses, were a pair of intelligent looking eyes, sharp and alert, but on closer look, a curious purple flame seemed to be dancing mischeviously in those eyes.

"Mr. Takarada,", he greeted the older man curtly with an extended hand. "It is a pleasure to meet you. I am here regarding a job."

Lory stood up and shook the young man's hand a little apprehensively. For the first time in his life, he felt intimidated by a young man and this frightened him slightly. Every inch of the man radiated some kind of a power and Lory found himself almost bowing to him.

"I see.", he managed to reply. "So, you are here about a job. And your name please?"

But his 'visitor' ignored the question as he gazed at Lory condescendingly up and down. Lory felt rather uncomfortable, like a naughty school boy being apprehended by his teacher.

"Is something wrong with my appearance?", he asked innocently.

The man's lips curled into a sneer, as he took in the extravagant pink clown's dress and ridiculous looking boots that Lory was wearing. "Everything.", he replied witheringly, making Lory want to crawl under a table and remain hidden forever.

"I expect you to get smartened up in", he glanced at his watch, "twenty minutes. Then we can get to business."

He looked at the President piercingly, gave a curt nod and left the room.

* * *

The door opened slowly, and Kyoko's head poked in, looking around the apartment warily. She tip-toed inside and locked the door behind her, before continuing to tip-toe inside as though she were walking through a mine field. She stopped dead in her tracks when she thought she heard a ' creak' and continued on her pace, looking around the apartment suspiciously for spooky apparitions.

The house was still chilly, but that evil, menacing atmosphere that had been there earlier was absent now. She breathed a sigh of relief and drew open the curtains, letting the sunlight flood the rooms. The temperature rose to a comfortable level, and for the first time the apartment attained the semblance of a 'home'.

Kyoko decided to wash her wounds again before getting ready to leave. She had left Ren's apartment early, leaving her note and ring by his side.

As she took off her clothes, she found that her wounds were once again, raw and red. After she woke up, she had felt a tingling sensation on the spots where the monster had touched her in her nightmare. Her bruises had worsened after that.

Kyoko let out a sigh of resignation. _Does this mean I won't have any peace even in my sleep now? _ She thought irritably, mentally cursing the spirit. She gently scrubbed the bruises and dressed up before going to prepare breakfast.

Suddenly, her phone rang. She picked it up, her finger hovering above the 'Answer' button, when she saw who it was.

_Ren Tsuruga calling…_

"I'm sorry Ren..", she whispered sadly, disconnecting the call. "But I have to do this.."

She prepared a sandwich and was about to sit down to eat when her phone rang again. Kyoko felt her heart clench painfully, thinking it was Ren. But when she glanced at the screen, she frowned in confusion and surprise. It was the President.

Strange.., she thought picking up the phone. He doesn't call so often anymore. Not since I graduated from the Love Me section anyway.

"Mogami san?", the President answered curtly before she could say a word. "I need you here in my office by eight. I have something important to discuss with you regarding your manager."

"You mean Gloria san", Kyoko asked, surprised. But the President disconnected the call. Kyoko listened to the beeping at the other end, stunned. The president had sounded more like a strict principal than his usual jolly self.

_If he's in a bad mood I'd better not make him wait then_., Kyoko thought nervously. She decided to have her breakfast on the way and was about to pick up her sandwich when she suddenly saw what was on her plate.

Two dead looking hands, bearing a suspicious resemblance to the hands that had tightened around her throat in her nightmare, lay on her plate. They were exactly the same hands, Slashed and horribly bloodied, the veins sticking out at the ends.

Kyoko felt her stomach give a tremendous heave, but flung away the plate as far away from her as she could with a disgusted shriek. She swallowed down the nauseous feeling at her throat, and ran out of the apartment with her bag and phone.

* * *

Kyoko stood bent on her knees,breathing hard. She hadn't stopped running until she had reached the President's door, and now she was trying to catch her breath before going in. When she was finally ready, she knocked the door and entered when the President called out "Come in", in a rather domineering tone.

"Ah, good morning Mogami san.", the President greeted her curtly. "Please have a seat, while we discuss the matter regarding your manager, Gloria."

Gloria Cooper was Kyoko's manager of three years. Though an American citizen by birth, her mother was Japanese and so she had been living in Tokyo, employed by LME as a manager. Middle-aged, but efficient, she had a natural gift for being a manager and Kyoko had no complaints with her,

"Gloria Cooper will no longer be working with us.", the President continued. "She has been fired from this agency."

Kyoko blinked in confusion. "Fired?', she asked slowly. "I don't understand President san. Why was she fired?"

"That,", the President replied sharply, "is a matter between Gloria and myself. I have now found you a new manager. Mr. Reino."

Kyoko had an ominous feeling when she heard footsteps behind her. "Please!", she prayed as she slowly turned to see her new manager. "Please don't let it be him!"

But her prayers were unanswered as the former Vie Ghoul member, now smartly dressed in a suit, smirked at her. "Long time no see Kyoko.", Reino greeted her.

Kyoko sprang up from the chair, her eyes blazing with anger and hatred. "You Beagle!", she said contemptuously. "You have been disgraced on television before the whole of Japan, and yet you..you show up here, as my manager? Get out of my sight!"

"Mogami san!", the President interrupted her frostily. "Mr. Reino is a highly competent young man and a much more efficient manager than Gloria_. I_ should know! After all,I hired him."

"Which makes me think you are not entirely in your right mind President san!", Kyoko shot back, forgetting who she was talking to. Her eyes raked over the plain grey suit and black tie that the President was dressed in. He looked more like a strict school principal than the President she was used to, and the cold unrelenting stare of his hawk like eyes didn't help matters.

"I assure you Mogami san, I am absolutely sane and fully in my senses.", Lory retorted. "I have full confidence in this man's abilities, and I fail to understand why you don't, knowing that I always have your best interests at heart."

"President san!", Kyoko said through gritted teeth, "This man is a stalker! A beast! A demon!" The president merely gave her a tolerant smile, that fuelled her anger and she continued ranting. "He..he almost raped me a few years ago!"

The President sighed, as though it was costing him every bit of his patience to carry on this conversation. "Mogami san,", he said with a benevolent smile. "There is a fine line between _almost_ being raped and _actually_ being raped." At this Kyoko's jaw dropped in disbelief. She couldn't believe the President was being so unreasonable! "Reino has told me about your history.", Lory continued calmly, at which Kyoko shot Reino a scorching glare. "And he has assured me, that it was merely a moment of indiscretion on both your parts."

"A moment of-, Excuse me?!", Kyoko spluttered. " That 'moment of indiscretion' was nothing less than sexual harassment President !", she had dropped all honorifics now. "And yet..you _assign_ him-"

"Mogami san!", Lory interrupted her and continued as though she hadn't said a word. "Will you please treat your manager with a little more respect? You should be honored to have him as your manager. I am very disappointed in you. Nevertheless, I shall ignore this childish outburst of yours and pretend that you have thanked me most graciously for my kindness. Now if you please, I am extremely busy today. So I would highly appreciate it if you left now."

Kyoko nearly burst a vein at this complacent speech. She felt Reino take firm hold of her elbow. "You heard the boss.", he sneered. With a nod at the President, he dragged her out of the room.

Kyoko violently shook off Reino's hand off her elbow. "You filthy beagle!", she spat at him. "Who do you think you are, following me here?! This is absolutely the last straw!"

To her fury, Reino buckled up on his knees and started to laugh. "You haven't changed a bit 'Mogami san' !", he said sardonically, in between laughs. "The same anger..the same fury..the same temper..I'm glad to find that my efforts won't be in vain!"

"What efforts?", Kyoko asked with clenched fists. He smiled, only adding to her fury. "Why, my efforts to steal you away from that beast of course.", he replied drily. At this, Kyoko felt her temper finally explode, as she raised her hand to give the Beagle a resounding whack across his stupid grinning face, but he was too quick for her. He caught her hand and took advantage of her momentary surprise, by hoisting her bodily on his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"NOOOOOO!", Kyoko yelled protestingly, hammering Reino's back with her fists and trying her best to kick him. "Let me go! I order you to let me go this instant! Help me someone!"

Reino chuckled as they passed several curious onlookers, none of whom stopped to help. "It's no use honey!", he told her cheerfully. "I've got most of the employees convinced that I'm the best thing that has ever happened to you!"

LME employees craned their necks to watch the scene of a screaming girl hoisted on her manager's shoulder. Kyoko was furious. _This is ridiculous!_ , she thought angrily. _This has to be bad dream! Yes, that must be it! A-_

Kyoko's thoughts were cut off when she caught sight of one of the curious onlookers. A medium height, bespectacled man, was watching the scene before him, his jaw dropped, and eyes widened with horror. "Kyoko chan?", Yashiro cried in disbelief.

Kyoko's mind went blank for a moment. _Shit_!, she screamed inwardly. _Yashiro san! NOOOOO! Please don't tell Ren now! Or maybe you'd better and he'll help out of this situation! But how the hell am I supposed to face him?_

Reino unceremoniously dumped his charge on the seat next to his in the car before getting behind the wheel.

"YOU IDIOT!", Kyoko said angrily. "Yashiro san just saw the whole thing! What am I supposed to tell Ren now?", she wailed, her head in her hands.

"Well, it would make things a lot easier for me obviously.", Reino replied matter of factly. " One he's out of my way, my path to you will be clear. He'll probably want to break up with you hmm?", he asked , shooting a sly sidewise glance at her.

At his words however, he felt her mood drop considerably. "Hey, hey, what's wrong?", he asked, surprised by her downcast attitude. She looked so unhappy and sorry looking, he longed to reach out and-

"Kyoko!", he said abruptly. "Look at me." He didn't give her much choice either, as he took firm hold of her chin and forced her to look into his eyes. Kyoko felt his hateful purple eyes pierce through her and immediately averted her eyes, afraid of the power that drew her and at the same time repelled her from him. But that momentary eye contact was enough for Reino.

"I see..", he said finally. "So you've already broken up."

"It's none of your business!"Kyoko said roughly, trying to blink away her tears. The way this man could read her thoughts was fearsome!

Reino said no more, but started the engine and drove her to her shooting location. The drive was silent throughout, with Kyoko occasionally throwing furtive glances at her new manager.

He looked different from the time they had last met. Kyoko noticed that he looked..older. His face was even paler, if that was possible. And there seemed to be a few permanent creases on his forehead. Around his neck, Kyoko saw, that hateful chain with which he had captured her grudge spirit. There was something else different about him, she noticed. He seemed to be emitting some kind of an aura. Power radiated from every inch of his body, or so Kyoko felt. It felt as though he had somehow become less human…

Meanwhile, Reino too felt something strange about the girl beside him. Something's different..", he thought confused. "Something seems missing about her..and she seems downcast about many things..not just a break up.."

The thought continued nag him until they reached the next location. As he watched Kyoko get down and walk dejectedly towards the studio, it struck him.

_Her grudge spirit is gone!_

* * *

"AND CUT!", director Sasuke yelled. Chiori withdrew her hands from Kyoko's neck at the director's call. They were currently working on a show which featured short stories, one story every week. The story they were shooting now was to be a horror one.

"All right everyone, now take five!", the director yelled. He walked over to the two actresses with a smile. "That was very good you two.", he praised them. " Now get ready for the bathtub scene all right?" He gave them a nod and walked away to give further instructions to the camera men.

"Are you feeling all right Kyoko?", Chiori asked, sounding concerned. She was acting the ghost in the drama. She was dressed in a long, blood-stained white night gown and wore a long, black haired wig. "You seem a little jumpy today..Surely you can't be that deep in character?"

"I'm fine.", Kyoko lied. "Just a little tired that's all."

"I can see that", Chiori observed. Kyoko seemed a little paler than usual, and under her eyes were the beginnings of dark rings. "Haven't you been getting enough sleep?"

"It's time for the shoot now.", Kyoko replied shortly, not answering her question. She made her way to the set where a bathtub had been placed, filled with red-colored water.

"Ugh!", Chiori said shuddering. "And I have to float in that!"

The scene was that Kyoko would approach the bath tub and discover the long-haired young woman floating in a 'pool of blood'. The minute she got closer, Chiori would grab Kyoko, pull her into the water and hold her there for a few seconds.

"Ready everyone?", the director asked aloud. "Okay, Amamiya san, get into the tub, and Mogami san, stand back there by the bathroom door..yes! Okay camera men.." The director continued to shout instructions, while Kyoko went to her position and Chiori got into the tub with a grimace.

"Excuse me.", a quiet but authoritative voice interrupted the bustle going on in the studio. Everyone looked up to find an impressively tall figure standing in the set.

_Ren!_ Kyoko realized.

Ren walked towards the director with an apologetic smile on his face. "I'm very sorry to interrupt Director Sasuke.", he said politely. "But can I have a word with Mogami san for just a minute. It's terribly important."

The director gaped at him in awe for a moment and nodded. "Of course Tsuruga san. ", he readily agreed.

Kyoko closed her eyes wearily. Of course he would want an explanation for her walking out on him suddenly. But..did it have to be now? She still hadn't thought of what exactly to tell him when they met. It was one thing to dump him by letter. It was another thing to do so face to face, especially when there was no way she wanted to break up with him.

With a sigh of resignation, she and Ren made their way to an empty dressing room while the director continued with his instructions. She folded her arms and glared at him defiantly.

"Well?", she asked coldly. "What was this 'terribly important' matter you wanted to discuss with me?"

Ren glared back at her. "For a start,", he asked coolly, "What the hell is _this_,", he held up her letter ,"all about?"

Kyoko raised her eyebrows. "If that is all you came to ask, ", she said archly, "then I suggest you learn to _read_, Tsuruga san. I want us to break up. It's as simple as that!" She started to walk off back to the set when Ren grabbed her wrist and pulled her back, closer to him.

_Damn!_, Kyoko thought furiously. It wasn't like she exactly disliked their current position but it was going to be harder to lie to him now!

"I read your letter perfectly well Kyoko.", Ren said in a low voice. "And I had a hard time swallowing it's contents. One minute you're happily falling into my arms telling me you'll marry me and next moment you're backing out for no reason at all! You really had me worried Kyoko! Ever since yesterday, you've been acting strange! What's going on?"

"Ren!", Kyoko said in a stern voice. "I want out of our relationship! There's no deep reason behind it! I..I don't feel happy with you! Now let me go!" She tried to pull out of Ren's grasp but he was too strong for her.

"Then look at me!", he quietly ordered her.

"What do you mean?", Kyoko asked nervously. "Ren, you're disrupting the filming schedule!"

"Look at me in the eyes Kyoko.", Ren repeated , jerking her chin so that she was facing him properly. "Stop gazing at the wall behind my shoulder and look at me! And _then_ tell me that you want to break up!"

Kyoko gulped as she gazed deep into his dark, honest eyes, burning with love and desperation. She was hurting him so much..was it really necessary to lie to him?

"She wants to break up because she has other plans.", a voice interrupted and Reino stepped into the room with a smug smile on his face. "with me..", he added.

Ren felt that familiar boiling sensation within himself. It couldn't be true.. Though Yashiro had told him about the little scenario he had witnessed at LME that morning.

"I don't believe it!", he snarled at the Vie Ghoul singer before him. "And what are you doing with her anyway?"

"It's nothing Ren!", Kyoko interrupted, shooting a glare at Reino. "This beagle is just my manager! And he's not the reason why we're breaking up!"

Ren swung towards Kyoko. "Manager?",he asked incredulously. "Since when?"

"Since this morning.", chipped in Reino. "Your President decided that he could use my talents and hired me after firing Gloria. End of story. Now if you please, Ren Tsuruga, Kyoko has a scene to shoot and you are delaying it terribly. We would be much obliged if you leave."

He looked piercingly into Ren's eyes, who met his gaze unflinchingly. "Do as you please Mr. Stalker.", Ren said in a chilling voice. "But I will _never_ hand her over quietly to you."

Reino gazed at him for a few seconds. He gave a humorless smile as he replied, " Interesting..you're not as easy as the others..and I'm Kyoko's manager now. _Not _her stalker."

" 'Manager' is just a fancier word for 'stalker' ", Ren retorted. He turned when he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was the director.

"You've engaged Mogami san for _more_ than five minutes Tsuruga san.", he said coldly, all the reverence gone from his voice. "Now will you please leave?"

Ren frowned in confusion at the director's change in attitude. Reino gave laughed sardonically. "You heard the old man Tsuruga.", he said. "Leave."

Ren left the studio frowning in confusion. _There's something fishy going on..I'd better keep an eye on Kyoko.._

The director turned to Kyoko, a warm smile back on his face. "Mogami san, the set is almost ready. We'll start shooting in another five minutes.", he told her.

Kyoko nodded. "I'll just go and fix my make up.", she informed him and walked away towards her dressing room, blinking back tears. She had hurt Ren_! Ren_, of all people! But she was now even more determined to solve the mystery behind the ghost in her apartment. No spirit was going to keep them apart for long!

She was putting on her lipstick when there was a knock at the door. "Mogami san!", a woman's voice called out. "We'll be doing a rehearsal of the scene first. Please go to room 9 instead of room 3."

"All right!", Kyoko answered, giving her hair one quick brush. She left the dressing room and went to room 9, which was a little further inside the studio. She opened the door and found the tub ready, and filled with red water.

"Chiori?", Kyoko called uncertainly when she saw the white clad figure floating in the tub._Why did she get in now? _She thought, puzzled. _None of the crew are here yet!_

"Chiori, you idiot!", she cried. "You'll catch a cold floating about in there! There's a limit to 'getting into character!' "

Chiori did not respond, and continued to float on her back, her long hair covering her face as it floated in the water. "Chiori?', Kyoko bent down to tap her shoulder, wondering if she had fallen asleep in the tub. She let out a scream as the girl grabbed her inside and pushed her underwater.

Kyoko barely had any time to breathe when she found her head immersed in water. A strong hand was pushing her inside. She opened her mouth for air, but swallowed water instead. She struggled hard, splashing water outside, but the woman's grip was too strong. She heard the woman cackle, a high-pitched laugh, that chilled her to the bones. This was definitely not Chiori!

Kyoko vaguely heard a knocking sound at the door, before blacking out.

...

"KYOKO! KYOKO! OPEN UP!"

Kyoko's eyes snapped open at the frantic yelling and banging. She was standing in her dressing room once again, completely drenched. There was no sign of the mysterious girl and the bathtub at all! The fact that she was soaked to the skin was the only proof of what had happened earlier.

Kyoko now felt terror and dread flood through her. That evil spirit could follow her everywhere! Even outside that horrible apartment!

"KYOKO!", Chiori's panic stricken voice interrupted her thoughts. She went to open the door, and found to her surprise that it was locked. She unlocked the door and swung it open to find a flood of faces before her-some panicked, and many annoyed.

'Kyoko! Are you all right?", Chiori asked the pale, scared looking girl before her. She felt Kyoko's forehead. It was cold and clammy. "Why are you so wet? Kyoko, have you been showering or something?"

Kyoko did not answer, but merely stared at her, too frozen for words.

"Mogami san?", the director asked uncertainly. "Is something wrong?"

It took her a few moments to regain her senses. "I..I'm not feeling very well director.", Kyoko said faintly. In fact, she was feeling positively ill. "Is..is it all right if I take the day off?", she looked pleadingly at him.

Her face was a ghastly shade of white. The director reluctantly nodded. "All right. Take today off.", he said kindly. "We'll be seeing you again in three days then. We hope you'll feel better by then."

"Thank you!", Kyoko bowed gratefully. She changed out of the wet clothes, and hurried out of the studio, avoiding the pointed glares and puzzled looks of the actors and crew. She inhaled the fresh, sweet air deeply, once she was outside.

_I still feel a little feverish_., she thought. _But I can't go on cancelling shoots like this! Is this what she meant by destroying my career?_

Hopelessness washed over her. She was so deeply absorbed in her thoughts, she did not hear the footsteps behind her and jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Next time you decide to walk out of a shoot, at least let your manager know!", Reino said irritably.

Kyoko felt her fears disappear as anger, annoyance and a tiny bit of fear took over her at the sight of the 'purple-eyed dog' , as she liked to call him. To her indignation, he took firm hold of her elbow and half dragged her to his car. She got into the car, fuming, and refused to even look his way.

"As my manager, will it be possible for you to cancel my shoots for today?", she asked sarcastically.

"Of course.", Reino replied nonchalantly. He whipped out his cell phone and rang up the concerned people, informing them with a brief apology that Kyoko would be unable to attend the day's shoot. This only heightened her anger. She had been dying to vent out her frustrations on him and fire him if he had botched up the job.

Her angry silence amused him. "Well,well, after a bout of anger, I suppose keeping silent would be _spiritually _uplifting.", he sneered. Kyoko glanced at him sharply.

"What do you mean by 'spiritually'?", she asked tensely.

Reino smirked and leaned close to her. A bit too close for comfort actually.. Kyoko, to her horror, found herself freezing up at his light touch, and his breath on her skin. She hated it when this happened. For some reason, she felt so terrified of his mere presence sometimes, that she became completely defenseless and vulnerable before Reino.

"What happened to your grudge spirit?", he whispered, his lips moving against her skin. He moved slowly down her neck, feeling anger when she shuddered at his touch.

"Do you despise me so much?", he hissed bitterly, his face drooping downwards, leaning against her chest for support. "Are you besotted with that beast so much..that even your grudge spirit decides not to show up anymore?"

"My grudge spirit .", Kyoko croaked. He lifted his head from her chest, and stared at her incredulously. Kyoko felt her head clear immediately and heaved a sigh of relief.

"Dead?", he asked skeptically. "Spirits don't die baka!"

But Kyoko was now staring at him as though seeing him in a completely new light. Those strange incidents from yesterday..the President's strange behavior and willingness to hire Reino as a manager..It wasn't a coincidence.

She glared at him hatefully. "Just what kind of black magic did you use on the President?", she asked through gritted teeth. He looked surprised at first, and then smiled.

"Black magic? Oh no sweetheart! It wasn't black magic! But I won't deny..I have the power to control people's will if I can.. Except your boyfriend and you of course! He seems to have an exceptionally strong mind..he can block me at will, and without even trying. And you- you have an exceptionally pure mind, one that both repels me and draws me to you at the same time. Annoying isn't it? It would have been so much easier to make you mine then. I wouldn't have to do all this then. An-"

Reino broke off and Kyoko froze when she realized that he had unknowingly managed to slip his hand under her shirt. His fingers were lightly caressing the slashes on her chest. He looked at her curiously. "Wha-". But before he could complete, Kyoko delivered a punch on his face. "You bastard!", she said furiously, roughly shaking his hands off her, before she got off the car. He was responsible for all this!

Reino watched her go, as he nursed the bruise on his face. His hands had felt what was unmistakably a wound..One touch had sent electricity tingling through his body.

It's been a while since I touched something that hurt so much..he mused, remembering Kyoko's 'Corn' stone. The wound was not a normal one..Should I?

After a few moments of internal debate, he made up his mind, but with a rebellious heart. He took out his phone and rang up the agency for the number he wanted.

"I wanted to snatch her away from him!", he muttered grumpily as he dialed Ren Tsuruga's number. "So what am I doing, playing cupid?"

* * *

**A/N: Hope you liked that! I think I once mentioned I wouldn't be using white-clad ghost woman in the story! XD But well..just been watching Grudge and couldn't resist! ;)**

**Review please! **


	6. Unexpected revelations

**A/N:- Hello everyone! Finally updated! Anyway, read,review and enjoy!**

* * *

Ren walked into the elevator, feeling grimmer by the minute. He had come to the address Reino had given him and was now heading up to what was most probably the singer turned manager's apartment.

He had received a phone call from Reino that morning. A short and cryptic message, asking Ren to come over as he had some important information regarding Kyoko. If Ren hadn't been so desperately worried about Kyoko's strange behavior , he would have only come up to deliver a sharp blow on Reino's jaw.

The elevator doors slid open and Ren made his way to Reino's apartment. As he raised his hand to ring the doorbell, he had a faint feeling that something was not quite right. He didn't trust Reino one bit and his instincts nagged at him. But he put aside his fears, fully on guard and rang the bell.

The door opened slowly and he stepped inside looking around for Reino. To his surprise, there was no one behind the door! Before he could run for it, the door shut itself with a loud bang.

Ren felt an ominous chill run down his spine. There was an evil, managing atmosphere in this place. He silently cursed himself for coming all alone and unarmed . He slowly made his way inside the apartment and froze when he heard voices.

They seemed to be coming from inside one of the bedrooms. He cautiously went towards the bedroom door which was shut and pressed his ear to the door . There were sounds of laughter and talking inside. One of them was Reino and the other was..

_Kyoko_!, Ren realized. He pressed his ears closer and listened intently.

"That felt great Reino!", he heard Kyoko moan. "God..I thought I was in heaven.."

Ren clenched his fists, his heart pounding in anger. _Heaven_?

Reino chuckled and there was a brief interval of kissing And moaning. Ren was now at boiling point and banged the door open. He looked around and blinked. The room was empty!

"Show time over!", he heard a voice announce drily behind him. He turned to find Reino casually leaning against a wall, surveying him with amusement.

"You bastard!", he growled, stomping over to Reino, itching to break every bone in his frail body. "You brought me here to listen to a recorded tape of you and-"

"That was no recording.", Reino interrupted. "The voices you heard were live, Ren Tsuruga."

Ren stopped in his tracks and frowned. "What do you mean?", he asked, the anger still evident in his voice. "You mean to say there were invisible people in that room?"

Reino chuckled and strolled over beside him. Ren could feel a different aura about Reino since their last meeting. The man now seemed to be radiating some kind of power.

"I brought you here because I have something important to tell you concerning Kyoko.", he said quietly. "Something that concerns her life and safety..but you might find what I have to say so unbelievable and fantastic, that I had to do all this first in order to convince you."

He paused , looking piercingly at Ren. "Do you believe in ghosts and spirits?", he finally asked.

Ren stared at him in amazement. He had obviously not expected a discussion on the supernatural. But Reino was looking at him so gravely, that he could not help wondering that there was indeed something strange going on in that place.

"I never did.", he replied. "But something about your place makes me feel that I was wrong."

Reino waved a hand towards the door and Ren felt a tremendous wind blow through the apartment. It felt like a tornado inside. He tightly held onto the door frame when the wing suddenly died down. Reino closed the door and locked it.

"My spiritual room, as I like to call it,", he said leading Rsn towards the drawing room," is where I lock up the spirits in my captivity once I am done torturin the hell out of them. I often catch wandering spirits and trap them here for my amusement. I enjoy their company, though they hate me intensely.", he chuckled to himself. "And of course the poor souls can never fight me! I can torture them and do as I please with them. I have a particular fetish for female spirits.. They are surprisingly good in bed.."

He motioned Ren to a sofa and sat down himself. Ren remained standing Nd glared at Reino." So you are responsible for Kyoko's condition !", he said through gritted teeth, advancing menacingly at Reino." I'll kill y-"

"Oh please, only Kyoko can be excused for coming up with an explanation like that seeing she isn't one of the most intelligent people on the planet.", Reino interrupted unflinchingly in a bored voice. "I expected you to be a little more intelligent Ren Tsuruga."

Ren stared at him for a few moments and sat down. "What do you want to tell me?", he asked in a forced polite tone.

Reino smirked before answering. "Today you're charming girlfriend was foolishly trying to resist my attempts to seduce her..", he grinned when he saw Ren clench his fists, "when I noticed a wound on her body."

It was no normal wound and I am the only person apart from Kyoko to be able to see it.", Reino leaned over, his voice barely a whisper. He was clearly enjoying creating a dramatic atmosphere.

Ren frowned, trying to recall any such wounds on Kyoko's body. "I don't quite understand..", he said slowly. "A wound that no one else can see? Where exactly was this wound?"

"On her upper left chest.", Reino replied without thinking.

Ren's eyes narrowed dangerously as he slowly processed this. "And how did you know that?", he growled in a low voice.

Reino was tempted to reply that he had been feeling up Kyoko's body by putting his hand down her shirt but decided against it. He had't invited Ren to his apartment to start a fight.

"I have powers and ways of sensing these things.."? He covered up smoothly. Ren relaxed a little but he still looked slightly suspicious, so he continued on hurriedly.

"The point is that the wound was not inflicted by a human or an animal. It was a spirit. Possibly a vengeful one.."

A dead silence greeted this revelation. Ren stared at Reino in disbelief, wondering whether to believe his crazy theory or not. A few minutes ago, he would have knocked over Reino for fooling with him. But after what he had witnessed in the apartment, he was forced to accept Reino's words.

"Why are you telling me this ?", he asked, his suspicions returning.

Reino looked at him for a few seconds, his face impassive. "I would love to solve this little problem on my own.", he admitted. "But my powers of persuasion have little or no effect on strong minds , like yours or Kyoko's. and since she refused to tell me of her own free will what exactly happened with her, I am powerless to help. But she trusts you. She will confide in you. And then only can I help."

He paused before adding," I love her as much as you do Tsuruga. That perhaps is the only thing we share in common. Like you, I hate to see her under the mercy of someone she can never win against."

Ren gave a him a small nod, feeling a grudging respect for him. But he could not and would not do shake off the dislike and mistrust that he held against Reino .

Reino got up and led him to the door. "Kyoko should be home by now.", he informed Ren. "She wanted all her shoots cancelled for today. I therefore suggest you look for her there."

* * *

Ren rang the bell, waiting impatiently . To his relief, Kyoko was home.

"Ren!", she cried in relief , flinging herself into his arms, dragging him inside. Ren looked at her in alarm, as she hurriedly closed the door. He had never seen her look so frightened .

She flung her arms around him again, sobbing. "There's something horrible about this place !", she said in between sobs. "Ever since I moved in, I have this horrible feeling that someone is following me..watching me all the time! Do you know what happened on set today?" She then flooded Ren with her experiences on the set and also about the episode with his clone.

As Ren listened, he felt a familiar chill in the apartment, not unlike the one in Reino's.

"Kyoko.", he said urgently. "We need to get out of here now! You're right! There's something wrong about this place. You're in danger but you'll be safe in my place . A-"

Ren broke off, as he felt something slice through him. He let out a gasp of pain as he felt something slice out immediately after. He watched, stunned, as Kyoko slowly stepped away from him, an evil smile gleaming on her face. She held a bloody knife in her hands.

Ren looked down at his stomach in disbelief. Kyoko had just stabbed him!

As the realization of his wound hit him, he collapsed to the floor, clutching his wound to stop the bleeding. Kyoko turned her back and went to the telephone. "Who are you..?", Ren managed to get out hoarsely. He refused to believe it was Kyoko.

The woman turned, a demonic smile marring Kyoko's sweet face. "Someone who hates Kyoko more than anyone else in the world.", she said coldly and turned back to the phone. Ren blacked out after that, starting to feel rather weak. Before losing consciousness he made a mental note to murder Reino for leading him on like this. _I should never have trusted him in the first place! He was lying all the time just so he could get me out of his way!_

* * *

The demoness smiled when the person at the other end picked up the phone. "Hello Hana?", she spoke into the receiver." Remember the Kyo blackmail case? This time I have a bigger scoop. Kyoko Mogami stabs her dear boyfriend in her own apartment. The knife is still here of course. With her finger prints. Get your team here quickly for the story of a lifetime."

She put down the phone with a satisfied face had transformed back to its original features. Kyoko would be arriving in a few minutes and then..Her smile grew wider as another idea hit her. She picked up the receiver again and dialed 9..9..9

* * *

**A/N:- I hope you enjoyed reading that ! I should be revealing the ghost in the next chapter! I'll definitely try to update soon!**

**:)**


	7. The other Angel

**A/N: Howdy everyone! Yeah..I know I'm terrible at updates. I've been engaged in a Temple Run 2 tournament with my best friend ! AND I WON! 65 MILLION COINS IN ONE RUN! If you're a temple runner, you'll know how addictive it can be.. If not..try it out! This chapter was in my head for sometime..but..now I finally was inspired enough to write it! Enjoy and review! Hope you get a few laughs out of it! I was in a really good mood you see! ;)**

* * *

Kyoko stared at the still figure lying on the floor for a few seconds, frozen on the spot. Slowly, she made her way towards the body and with a shaking hand turned him over, praying over and over again that it was not true..that she was just living in a nightmare..

"Ren!", she choked back a scream and began shaking him and feeling his pulse. To her relief, his heart was still beating, though a little irregularly. Judging by the warmth of his body, he couldn't have been lying there for very long. He still had time.

Hope resurged in her heart and she whipped out her cell phone. She stroked Ren's hair soothingly as she dialed for an ambulance. Her hand froze mid-air when Ren suddenly stirred feebly, and mumbled incoherently. Kyoko bent over and gently cradled his face, turning it so she could hear what he was saying.

"Reino..kill ya soon..", he mumbled, but those words were enough to ignite Kyoko's wrath.

"BEAAAGLE!", she screamed with rage."If Ren d..dies, I will never rest until I hunt you down! And then I will chop you into teeny tiny pieces and offer it as a sacrifice to the Devil!"

She furiously dialed the number, mentally cursing Reino. Her voice must have been exuding her rage for the person on the line answered her 'hello' rather nervously.

"T..Tokyo Hospital Madame! H..how may I help you?"

"I need you to send an ambulance to 'Paradise apartment' right away!", Kyoko said urgently. "Please hurry! My boyfriend has been seriously injured!"

"An ambulance has already been sent over Madame.", the voice replied politely. "We received a call a few minutes ago. The matter has been reported to the police. They should be arriving soon."

Kyoko disconnected the call, as the receptionist's voice sank in.

'I will destroy everything..' , the demoness's words played over and over in her head. She now realized the situation she was in. The knife dripping with Ren's blood, lying near him was proof. Proof that _she_ had killed him..or attempted to anyway.

She felt anger and hopelessness engulf her as she realized her fate. Her love..her career..everything was finished! Over! Overnight, she would be labeled a 'murderer'.

She gently stroked Ren's handsome face, praying that he lived. If he were to die thinking that she never cared..Kyoko felt tears rolling down her cheeks as she bent over to kiss him. She jumped when she heard the door bell ring.

She ran to answer it and stared at the army of police, nurses and worst of all-reporters. The police were having a hard time restraining the excited press from barging into the apartment. The nurses pushed their way in and yelled in confirmation that the call about being Ren Tsuruga being stabbed was not a prank.

Kyoko watched numbly as Ren was gently laid on a stretcher and hurried out. A few policemen searched the room for evidence and preserved the incriminating weapon. The team of cameramen and the reporters seemed to be from the same channel. Kyoko wearily closed her eyes as she recognized Hana. _Just what I needed!,_ she thought grimly.

"Mogami san," a police stepped forward with a pair of handcuffs. "I arrest you for the attempted murder of Ren Tsuruga. I must warn you that anything you say may be taken down as evidence against you. You have the right to hire an attorney..", and on and on he went, _just the kind of scene you expect to read in a cheap thriller.._, Kyoko thought dully, her mind vaguely conjuring up some interesting curses she was itching to try out on Reino.

She blinked as she felt the handcuffs firmly bind her wrists, and was lead out by the police. Hana continued spouting rubbish in front of the camera with her infuriating smile.

"And so..we have here another show- biz romance, gone horribly wrong.", she concluded, before turning to Kyoko. "Now Kyoko san, the ultimate question of today- Why did you kill Ren? Was it for money? Were you secretly married? Was he cheating on you?"

_Go drown yourself bitch!_, was what Kyoko was strongly tempted to say. Instead she merely stayed silent, mentally adding Hana to her curse hit list as the police led her out.

Hana turned to the cameras, beaming with ghoulish pleasure. "And as we can see my dear viewers,", she said winking,"Kyoko's silence implies that there is indeed some deep, dark mystery behind her actions! Thank you for watching 'Tokyo Tabloid' with your favourite host, Hana, and Remember! You always heard it from me first!"

* * *

Reino turned off the television, slowly contemplating the unexpected turn of events. He had lied to Ren when he'd said he had no clue about what was happening with Kyoko and the spirit. Though he wasn't too sure about it all himself, he had allowed enough images to flood his mind when he had touched Kyoko's wound. Enough images to guess that one, the vengeful spirit was a woman, two, she was residing in Kyoko's apartment, but not tethered to it, giving her the freedom she needed to wreak havoc in Kyoko's life. And most important of all, He had some connection with this spirit.

It was the last fact that confused him. He was sure that no one he knew was dead..Yet he could not dismiss his instincts.

Reino had also lied about Kyoko being in her apartment. He knew fully well, she was in a supermarket, having dropped her there himself. He'd had a vague suspicion that when Ren visited the apartment, something was bound to happen. And he had been keeping his fingers crossed that whatever it was, it would be nothing good. Come to think of it, he was still keeping them crossed..

He frowned as his thoughts turned to Kyoko. Whatever he had hoped for, he had definitely not anticipated this! In the end, it was his fault that Kyoko was in prison, and it was his responsibility to get her out and prove her innocence. The question was _how_?

He paced the floor thinking hard. What Kyoko needed was an alibi. An absolutely air tight one. But wha-?

Reino stopped in his tracks when something struck him. He had dropped Kyoko at the supermarket, knowing fully well that she did not want him to accompany her to her place. But if she had entered the market, even if it was for a few minutes..

Reino pondered over the idea thoughtfully. It was a small idea, one with not much hope of success, but definitely worth a try. He only hoped that the spirit, whoever she was, would be so caught up in her victory, that she would not think of what he just had…

* * *

"You want the recordings of today on our CCTV Cameras?", the store manger asked with raised eyebrows. "May I ask why, Mr-?"

"Reino.", he answered, flashing the manager a brilliant smile. "As for my reasons, I wish to help my client secure an alibi, that's all."

The manager stared at him for a few moments, before getting up on his feet. He casually sauntered over from behind his desk. Reino's eyes narrowed as he took in the middle aged man's, tight fitting jeans, that looked suspiciously tight and curved, the feminine green scarf around his neck, and the wedding ring on his left finger.

Reino felt his skin crawled as the manager walked behind him, lightly running his fingers up Reino's arms, his shoulders and trailing back down before finally letting go. "Are you a lawyer then?", the manager whispered, suddenly breathing down his neck. "Or a police? You must have a search warrant then? If you don't, I'll still hand you the disk, provided you..ah..satisfy me.."

Resisting a tremendous urge to throw up, Reino closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He stood up and swiftly pinned the manager down on the desk, on his back.

The man's eyes widened at first, only to close as Reino slowly slipped his fingers under his shirt and lightly stroked his skin. "Look at me.", he ordered the manager.

His eyes fluttered open, and body shuddered with pleasure under Reino's expert fingers. He looked up at the handsome young face with the most hypnotizing pair of eyes he had ever seen. He stared in fascination, deep into the purplish fire dancing In Reino's eyes and fell under their spell.

Reino brought his face dangerously close, smiling at him teasingly. "Now, now…", he whispered into the manger's ears, "We wouldn't want your wife to know about this do we?"

The old man shook his head, looking dazedly up at him.

"So how about a deal?", Reino continued, as his fingers trailed from the manager's chest and made their way under his pants to grasp firmly his already hardened manhood. The manager let out a soft moan, and nodded, surrendering to Reino. "You give me the tape now, in exchange for one night at a hotel tonight. Deal?"

The manager was already panting as Reino stroked him faster and nodded eagerly, his eyes shining with lust and excitement…

A few minutes later, Reino walked back to his car, carrying the precious disc and a bottle of sanitizer that he had bought at the store. He had not only retrieved a key piece of evidence but also had a date with the manager which he was certainly not keeping. The minute he was inside the car, he emptied half the bottle into his hands and began rubbing it vigorously. "Perverted bastard..", he muttered as he inserted the disc in his laptop. He had brought it with him in his car. "I feel sorry for his wife.."

He watched the recordings in anticipation, which quickly turned to boredom. It was one of the most boring things he had watched, but he dared not fast forward it in case he missed something important. With infinite patience and diligence he watched the tape and was beginning to lose hope when he finally caught sight of Kyoko.

Reino whooped in triumph, as he took in the time of recording at the corner of the screen. In no time, Kyoko would be out of prison! He shut down the laptop and drove over to the police station.

* * *

As Reino pulled into the parking spot however, another idea struck him, which dampened his spirits. His elation at being able to save Kyoko evaporated as he contemplated that the tape was useless after all..

The fact that Ren Tsuruga was still alive from his injury just after Kyoko's arrival was proof that he had been stabbed not too long ago. In which case, there were two ways the attack on him was possible.

One, either someone had stabbed him before Kyoko's arrival, or two, Kyoko had tried to kill Ren herself. And as the spirit didn't leave behind any evidence of it's presence except the incriminating knife with Kyoko's fingerprints, the police would be inclined to suspect the latter.

_No wonder the spirit didn't come after this recording!, _he thought furiously. _If she knows about this, she knows how useless it will be for Kyoko. Well, I'm not going to let all that work go to waste!_

He drummed his fingers on the wheel, thinking over his next course of action. He had an idea..And it would mean manipulating the police like he had manipulated LME's president and many of it's employers..and it was only a temporary solution. But it would give him the time he needed to exterminate this spirit for good. He took his laptop and got out of the car to show the police his 'evidence'.

Before leaving, he raised his eyes mockingly towards the sky. "Dear God in Heaven,", he said under his breath. "I renounced you, but I'll make a promise to myself with you as my witness. If my plan works, I'll go ahead as planned and continue my life with the spirits. If it doesn't, I'll go on a date with that manager!"

* * *

Inspector Nakamura shook her head regretfully after watching the recording. "I'm afraid this isn't proof enough Reino san.", she said, proving his expectations right. "Kyoko san was at the scene of the crime at a very crucial time. And there is the knife with her fingerprints.."

Reino leaned forward, his eyes flashing dangerously. "Would you consider Kyoko to be a very stupid woman inspector Nakamura?", he asked in a low, impressive voice, trying to make her feel important.

She raised her eyebrows at his question. "Because she left behind such a crucial piece of evidence?", she asked back coolly. "Criminals always make mistakes Reino..And Mogami san, not being a seasoned murderer must have attacked Tsuruga san in a frenzy."

"What if she didn't do it?", Reino insisted."What if she was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time? The fingerprints don't prove a thing! It was a bloody kitchen knife he was stabbed with! Of course it would have her fingerprints!"

The inspector did not flinch under Reino's penetrating gaze. Reino concentrated hard. He knew it wouldn't be easy. He had guessed it the moment he looked into her intelligent eyes. But this was his only hope. He would be able to manipulate her mind to his desires, though the struggle would definitely give him a headache later on.

"You do have a point..", Nakamura replied slowly. "But it could have been a double bluff. She could have easily hired an experienced killer to do the job for her. The knife with her fingerprints would raise questions among fans, just like yours. And naturally everyone would believe her to be innocent.."

Reino sighed with frustration. _She's been reading too many detective novels before becoming an inspector!,_ he thought disdainfully. _The very idea! Hired assassins! Hmmmph! What next? A secret supply of nuclear bombs to blow up the world?! _

He gently laid a hand on the inspector's. She looked at him startled as she felt a tingle of electricity flow along her veins. Her eyes became slightly fuzzy and less sharp.

"I know the evidence is too thin Inspector.", he said smoothly. "But I'm afraid it still gives me the right to have Kyoko released on bail..For the moment, you will drop this case against her on grounds of inconclusive evidence. Do you understand?"

"Yes.", Nakamura breathed, her eyes locked with his.

Reino took off his hand and smiled. "Well then, what are we waiting for?", he asked, leaning back in elation. It worked! "Bring her out!"

* * *

Reino could feel Kyoko's glare boring down his back while he signed the necessary documents. He looked up at her when he was finished and winked at her. "Well, we'll be off then!", he said cheerfully, grabbing Kyoko's hand and marching away, out of the station.

Kyoko shook her arm off roughly. "Don't touch me!", she spat. "You..you murderer! How _dare_ you? And then you release me on bail to make my life a living hell all over again?!"

"Are we on re-reruns now?", Reino asked irritably and once again hoisted an indignant Kyoko on his shoulder while making his way to his car. "Ouch! You're scorching me!", he said sardonically as she continued to glare at him.

"And just where are we going?", Kyoko growled threateningly. "What are you planning now beagle?! Abandoning me in another haunted house?"

"Hmm..I guess you could say so..", Reino replied, grinning as he thought about his apartment. "I'm dropping you at my apartment. Oh, and I do think you should show a little more gratitude for what I have just done."

"Gratitude?", Kyoko spluttered indignantly. "You tried to kill Ren and I'm supposed to be happy about that? And there's no way I'm going to your apartment! I'm going to the hospital to check on Ren! SO LET ME OUT NOW!"

Reino winced as Kyoko yelled in his ear and stopped the car. "We're home!", he said cheerily. He grabbed Kyoko's hand and dragged her out of the car. She struggled to escape but his grip was too strong.

"Let go! OW! You're hurting me!", she yelled, creating quite a commotion. Reino clamped his other hand firmly on her mouth and forced her to come with him, wincing only a little as she bit his hand hard.

_She's like a wild animal now!,_ he thought with amusement as he opened the door to his apartment and pushed her in.

Kyoko turned on him furiously but froze..She looked around the apartment apprehensively, wrapping her arms around herself as she felt the familiar chill in Reino's apartment. She stared at him wide-eyed, her courage failing her.

"So it's true..", she whispered."You're the one who set the spirits after me! You set everything up to get Ren attacked and me framed at the same time!"

"Kyoko..", Reino started, advancing towards Kyoko who only backed away quickly, falling oonto his sofa. He looked at the frightened young woman and sighed.

"Please hear me out.", he said quietly. "You're not totally wrong..but please listen to my story first. Okay?"

Kyoko gulped, and nodded slowly in agreement. Reino gave her a relieved smile and sat down on the seat opposite her.

"Do you remember this chain?", he pointed to the chain around his neck. Kyoko nodded, as she remembered how he had captured her grudge spirit with it.

"This chain is a family heir loom. It possesses the power to attract spirits, and if they are weak enough, capture them as well.", he continued, ignoring Kyoko's flabbergasted expression. "I put this on the night after our band broke up. I already had powers over spirits, but this necklace increased them tenfold. I could capture, control and torture spirits..An odd hobby, you might think, but I find pleasure in it..

When I touched the wound on your chest, oh yes, I can see them and feel them as well.", he added on seeing her startled expression. "A wound inflicted by a spirit is no ordinary one Kyoko. Very few people, apart from the injured person can see the wounds. These wounds also leave behind traces and memories of the spirits. In your case, the vengeful spirit is so consumed by hate for you, she left quite a lot of herself in you."

Kyoko continued to listen to this rather preposterous sounding, but unfortunately true story, though still not convinced of Reino's innocence.

"I touched you're wound only for a second, but long enough to realize that the spirit was out to destroy everything precious to you…

Ren Tsuruga knows this.", he said. Kyoko looked at him startled. "He came to me when I called him. I told him that you were being targeted by a spirit and finally…I sent him to your apartment, knowing fully well that he would only meet a full fledged monstrous spirit. I hoped it would hurt him..but I never expected this turn of events.."

He looked remorseful, but Kyoko felt her fury rise again. "You evil..", she struggled to find the words, but couldn't find insulting enough names to call him. She grabbed a vase and hurled it at him, but it only exploded mid air.

Reino sighed wearily. "You are in my apartment Kyoko. An apartment full of spirits, good and evil, weak and powerful, but all on my side. I do not regret getting Ren Tsuruga attacked, and never will. I hate him. Yes, if possible, I'd murder him with my bare hands. Because he is one of the few people who scare me. I hate him because he was with the girl _I_ like.

And so, I sought to steal you away from him, by coercing your president to become your manager. I am surprisingly good at manipulation and mind control Kyoko. It was that, which allowed me to get you away from prison."

Kyoko suddenly felt very tired. She was exhausted with everything that had happened over the last two days. The wounds..Ren's attack..and now Reino's looong lecture.

"Reino..", she said wearily, "Why did you bring me here? Why didn't you take me to the hospital?"

"The grounds I got you out on, are thin Kyoko.", Reino explained. "I had to use my powers of persuasion, but this is only temporary. The press don't know yet that you are out. Once they do however, they will question the police and remind them all the reasons why you _should_ be in prison. And then, I cannot stop them from arresting you. I can control a one, maybe two minds at a time. But I cannot manipulate the whole of Japan into thinking you are innocent."

"I repeat, why am I _here_?", Kyoko asked irritably.

"I want you to stay here for a while.", he replied simply. "The spirits here will make sure that the spirit, after you, will never trace you here. As long as you remain in this place, you will be safe. Do you understand?"

He gazed at her seriously for a few moments, and Kyoko reluctantly found herself nodding in agreement.

"Good.", Reino relaxed and got up. "And now, I want your address Kyoko."

"What for?", she asked suspiciously.

"I will be going to your apartment to rid you off this spirit once and for all.", he said shortly. "Keys please?", he held out his hand.

Kyoko hesitated for a moment and took out the keys from her pocket. "Paradise complex.", she said, handing it over to him. "You know where it is. It's not far from here."

Reino nodded and turned to leave, but paused. He turned back, with his careless smile back on his face. "I have one condition however,", he said slyly. "I will help you, but not for free. If I return alive and successful, you have to do whatever I ask you to. Do you understand?"

"All right!", Kyoko said impatiently. "Hurry up!"

"Not so fast now!", he drawled. "Do you understand what I mean. If I ask you to break it off with Ren Tsuruga, and be _m_y woman instead, you will have to do that!"

"All right.", Kyoko replied, after a short pause, looking at him straight in the eye.

Reino looked pleasantly surprised . "Well, in that case nothing can stop me from winning against this spirit, no matter how powerful it is! Remember your promise to be my girl from now on!", he said cheerily, and left the apartment.

Kyoko locked the door, and glared at it, longing to blast it into a million pieces. "Like hell I will!", she muttered under her breath and jumped when she felt a chilly breath down her neck. "Just kidding!", she called out nervously.

* * *

Reino unlocked the door to Kyoko's apartment and stepped inside cautiously. Yes..he could feel the presence of a spirit here…

He made his way to the bedroom, feeling the spirit' s vibes getting stronger. The moment he entered the bedroom however, the bedside lamp, lifted itself in the air and flew towards him. With a mere glance, he was able to blast it into smithereens. He turned his attention to a particular spot in the bedroom and clutched his chain, concentrating hard.

There was a pitiful wail from the corner. One by one, a hand..a neck..a leg and the rest of a body appeared eerily. Moments later, Reino found his breath catch, at her voluptuous figure..her long black hair..her bloodied hands…and her eyes filled with fire and hatred..

"Well, well..", he said softly, "it's the other angel.."

* * *

**A/N: Okay..I didn't reveal the name but I'm pretty sure you have a good idea by now about this 'other angel' who hates Kyoko so much. And is a Sho fan too! Just a couple more chapters till the end now! :)**


	8. Mimori

**A/N: Once, again, thanks a lot everyone for reading this fic! This chapter pretty much solves the mystery behind the ghost! WARNING: Lemon ahead! And it's a pretty weird one..not too graphic o don't worry! Read, review, enjoy, and laugh out loud! :P**

* * *

Mimori got to her feet slowly, her eyes glaring daggers at Reino. He watched her, rooted to the spot, taking in the long disheveled hair, the unhappy lines on her forehead and finally her blood-stained hands. Reino shuddered as his eyes rested on the grotesquely slashed hands. They looked so..so _torn_..Mimori stared at him silently, her face impassive, but beneath that calm exterior, he could sense anger, and hatred boiling..ready to explode any minute..like a ticking time bomb..

"Vie Ghoul's Reino..", she finally spoke. Her voice was harsh and cold. It had an unearthly quality about it that made it unrecognizable from her voice in life. "So you can see spirits..?", she finished questioningly, hugging herself with her arms tightly, as if she were cold.

Reino nodded, still eyeing her warily. He realized one thing now..This spirit was a capable opponent..capable enough of murder..and he had no wish to end up as her victim.

Mimori winced as she moved slightly. "I never thought I would be able to feel pain again..", she said quietly, speaking more to herself than to him. "Once was quite enough and now…", she trailed off, looking at him more suspiciously. "How _did_ you do that?", she asked sharply.

Reino walked slowly over to her, not realizing he was holding his breath. She was like a wild horse..she had to be tamed..controlled, if he had to get his work done..and it would need patience..and compassion..lots and lots of compassion. She looked like she was starved of it before death.

He raised his hand and gently stroked back her hair, repeating the motion again and again. At first, her eyes widened in surprise, and flashed dangerously. But his soothing strokes seemed to have effect and calmed her down as she closed her eyes, letting out a contented sigh.

Seizing the opportunity, Reino boldly took another step forward. His hands slowly trailed down her arms, and her clothes fell to her feet, following the motion of his hands. His eyes raked over her entire body, taking in signs of bruises..kiss marks and teeth marks. Once again, he gently massaged her body, running his hand up and down..as he cleansed away all the marks on her body. It felt running his hands through water. She wasn't human, so she wasn't solid..his hands would occasionally pass through her skin, making her shudder slightly in pleasure.

"Look at yourself Mimori..", he ordered her, gently moving her towards the mirror. "Look at yourself _now_.."

Mimori slowly opened her eyes, and stared in disbelief at her now perfect reflection. Reino's arms were now tightly around her waist, as he nuzzled her neck. "How-?", she started, letting out a surprised cry as Reino lifted her in his arms and lowered her on the bed. She lay naked before him, her body unmarred and more beautiful than it had been in life. Reino undressed and stretched beside her. He cupped her face with one hand, looking into her eyes compassionately.

"How do you do all that?", she asked hoarsely, in awe.

"Do what?", Reino asked smiling.

"Touching me..pleasing me..hurting me..?", she asked curiously, running her eyes down his frame, and finally resting on his hardened member. She tried running her hands along his chest and grasping his manhood, but to her frustration, her fingers went right _through_ him.

"Yet I can't touch you..", she mumbled, disappointed.

Reino wrapped his arms around her, gently pushing her on her back. He captured her lips in a passionate kiss, lightly teasing her with his tongue. He finally released her and smiled down at her. Mimori's eyes widened in surprise when she found her nails digging onto his back. She could touch him now..

Reino lightly kissed her neck and slowly, yet sensually, ran his lips down her throat..her breasts..her stomach..He gave her skin, an occasional lick, relishing her taste as his tongue flicked through her skin, sending waves of pleasure through her body.

Mimori let out a gasp of surprise when Reino's fingers suddenly dipped right through her skin. She felt a ripple coarse through her body, which only intensified as Reino's hand dipped completely inside. He began to move his hand, up-down, back and forth, watching his fingers through the translucent skin. His fingers skillfully tapped sensitive areas, making her enjoy bliss that she had never known before.

Reino bent down again to kiss her and swiftly entered her. At first Mimori didn't realize what had happened. But once Reino broke the kiss, she felt a curious, warmth within her..like someone had lit a lamp in her cold interior. She looked down and stared in shock and then wonder at their point of connection.

Reino gently pressed his lips against hers and began to rock slowly within her. Mimori twitched, as she felt his manhood and his fingers, playing with her inside-out and let out a soft scream of contentment at her climax..

Reino looked down at the now thoroughly relaxed and fuzzy-eyed spirit. She smiled at him lazily. "Thank you..", she whispered, running her fingers through his hair. He felt guilty, but his plan had worked and there was no way he was backing out now…

* * *

_**Flashback..**_

**6'th October..**

"One more!", Sho bellowed to the bar attendant, downing his fifth shot. His eyes were red and drunken looking. But rather than drowning out his sorrows, the alcohol only intensified them. Kyo was beside him, though not as drunk as Sho. He patted Sho's back sympathetically.

"You need to let go Sho..", he advised him sternly. "You've got to face it- Ren Tsuruga won her heart fair and square. And there's nothing you can do about it."

Sho ignored him and ordered more drinks. Kyo exchanged nods with the bar-tender. The drug was beginning to take effect. He moved closer to Sho and whispered in his ears, "I heard that Kyoko dumped That Tsuruga jerk!"

Sho turned to him wild-eyed. "Kyo..Kyoko..Where?", he spluttered, looking around. He turned to Kyo again. "You're not..having me on?", he croaked desperately.

"Would_ I _lie to you Sho?", Kyo replied with raised eye-brows. "The question is how are you going to treat her once she meets you. She treated you pretty shamefully. Look at your state! What are you going to do about that eh? Punish her..or let her get away with it?"

"I'D PUNISH THAT TWO-FACED BITCH!", Sho yelled, banging the counter. "I will hurt her in the most brutal, unimaginable way possible and once she's back to her senses, she'll be sorry she ever dared to forget me for that Ass! And then..", Sho added generously, "I will forgive her!"

"Atta boy! Exactly what she deserves!", Kyo replied cheerily. Sho gave him a small smile, too drunk to notice Kyo's sarcastic tone.

"And I know just how you can do that.", Kyo continued with an evil smile. "You take away what is most precious to her-her virginity!"

Sho stared at him looking perplexed. He was completely under the control of alcohol and the drug Kyo had slipped into his drinks. Though he would readily believe anything said to him now, no matter how nonsensical, it took him ten times longer to process what was being said to him.

"She' s a virgin?", he asked stupidly.

Kyo nodded. He really had no idea as to the truth of the statement, but it was necessary to his plan. At that moment, Mimori plopped herself on the stool beside Sho. He let out a sigh of relief. Now he could finally breathe.

"Hi Sho-chan!", she chimed, with a brilliant smile. She placed a slender hand on his and gave it a squeeze. "How've you been?"

Sho blinked at her a couple of times and turned to Kyo. "Remind me again who this is?", he muttered.

"It's Kyoko.", Kyo lied. "Kyoko Mogami remember? You're going to punish her too..You are going to rape her!"

"Ah, Of course!", Sho's face cleared. He finished his last drink and turned to Mimori. "Here are the keys to my apartment..", Kyo murmured, pushing them into Sho's pocket. "Paradise complex, flat 1306."

He got up and quickly left, a triumphant smile on his face. Miroku was waiting outside for him. "Well?", he asked Kyo. "Did it work?"

Kyo nodded. "She was pretty eager to meet up with him. And I convinced him to do her..the camera's ready to roll in my apartment. Soon Sho Fuwa will be dancing to our tunes!"

**7'th October, 9:40 a.m, paradise complex**

Sho woke up groggily, feeling as though someone had run a thousand knives through his head. Rubbing his head, he took off the blankets and froze when he realized he was naked. A black head caught his eye and he turned to find Mimori lying beside him. She was still asleep, with an innocent smile on her lips. But it was the blood stains on the blanket that freaked him out.

"MIMORI!", he bellowed, throwing the covers off her. He grabbed her arm and sat her up, shaking her roughly. "Wake up!", he said angrily.

Mimori woke up with a start. "Sh..Sho..", she stuttered, withering under his glare. "Wh..What's wrong?"

"Everything!", he snarled. "What the hell happened between us last night?",

" made love t..to me..", she began crying. "Sho chan..we finally became one..S..so why are you so angry?"

"Because-I-am-not-interested-in-a-pathetic-dog-like-you!", Sho replied through gritted teeth. "I don't give a damn about what I said or did to you last night, but I never want to see you again!"

He shoved her away and was about to get off the bed when she timidly asked him, "Is it because of Kyoko Mogami?"

Sho was still for a few seconds and turned to her. "So what if it is?", he asked her jerkily.

"So I was..just a one night stand?", she asked quietly.

"Yes.", Sho replied shortly. His eyes disinterestedly ran over her naked body..her huge breasts that he had often admired and the hickeys, reminding him of his drunkenness last night. But she was absolutely useless..uninteresting..compared to Kyoko..

"I wish, I could say I love you..that I care for you..", Sho said in a softer voice, making Mimori raise her eyes hopefully. How he despised girls like these! His eyes became sharper, and his voice venomous. "But Pochiri..I really don't give a damn about you..", breaking her heart into millions of pieces with those sharp words.

He got up and went to take a shower, trying to rid himself off his headache with cold water.

Mimori stared at the shut bathroom door, biting back screams of rage. Anger was seeping inside her. Anger directed to the person in her opinion, responsible for her misery-Kyoko. Mimori got up suddenly, clumsily putting on her clothes and made her way to the kitchen. She had never felt to hopeless before. She was heart-broken..defeated..and had no will to live. She took the kitchen knife and began to repeatedly slash her wrists, numb to the pain because of what she had already suffered.,

* * *

**END OF FLASHBACK..**

Reino kissed her forehead gently, feeling anger build up within him. For the first time in his life, he felt sorry for someone. Mimori was asleep..thanks to his coaxing. She was relaxed and her mind was vulnerable..like an open book. He just had to delve deep into her memories to find the motive for her attacks against Kyoko.

He now realized why he had felt a connection to this spirit. She was the woman who had black-mailed Kyo. After seeing Mimori's body, Sho had panicked. He managed to dispose off Mimori's body by burying her in a graveyard far away from the complex, without stopping to think that there was no evidence of him being responsible for her death.

_Unfortunately for him_, Reino thought with a wry smile_, Kyo's cameras had recorded the entire episode. He had never mentioned it to US, but probably started to black-mail Sho for extra money because of Mimori's death. She doesn't seem to be very well knoThat but I wonder why she hasn't been reported missing now.._

"That poisonous snake..", he muttered to himself."Not only did he manage to remain in our good books by black-mailing Sho to give him his latest songs, he also got handsomely paid for it!"

Reino could now guess what had happened. Mimori hadn't exactly died a peaceful death. Her boiling anger, hatred and jealousy at Kyoko turned her into a vengeful spirit. But she was still devoted to Sho. She put an end to Kyo's game by black mailing him with that sex tape. Once he had admitted his guilt, she released the vdeo anyway and for good measure….

Reino looked at Mimori's sleeping face curiously. He had found it strange the manner Kyo strangled himself. It would require super-human will power for a person to kill himself by his own hand. But moments before he died, Kyo had been looking at nothing in particular, with absolute terror on his face..He was about to reveal the name of the black-mailer, possibly he had recognized Mimori's voice, and was terrified because he was positive she was dead..But Mimori must have silenced him..She must have forced him to strangle himself on live television.

Reino sat up when he thought he heard a tiny wail form the bedpost. He turned, and found to his surprise, the grudge Kyoko, that Kyoko assumed to have been exorcised. And then it hit him..Why Kyoko alone was able to sense and bear the spirit's injuries..A part of her soul had been taken hostage.

He got up slowly, so as not to wake up Mimori and gently freed the grudge spirit from it's chains. Mimori must have made it look like she had destroyed it, so that no one would come looking for it to save Kyoko. He quickly put on his clothes and tip-toed out of the room, hoping his spell over Mimori would not wear off before he left the apartment.

But luck was not with him. Reino suddenly heard an unearthly screech and a swishing sound. Instinctively, he ducked, just in time. He slowly looked up and found the apartment door had a large, deep gash on it. He could see the outside of the apartment through it.

_Ouch!_ He thought wincing, his sympathies for Mimori evaporating instantly_. That could have been me!_

* * *

**A/N: Will definitely update soon! Review please!**


	9. Recovering spirits

**A/N: Once again, thanks for reading this story everyone! This chapter pretty much winds up the story. It's a little short but I hope you like it! I wanted to come up with my own brand of ghost-busting see? So with a little help from my weird imagination, a little inspiration from 'Angry Birds', and a lot of amusement, I concocted my own method of capturing a spirit! Please review and don't say you hate it! It's break my heart! ;)**

* * *

Before he could react, Reino felt an invisible, vice-like grip around his waist and found himself thrown across the room. He started to get on his feet, wincing in pain when he was once again flung away, this time, on a table.

Gasping and coughing blood, he turned slowly, wincing in pain, towards a triumphant Mimori. She looked fully in her senses and dangerously invulnerable. Suddenly, Reino felt invisible ropes coil tightly around him. He struggled to free himself, but an idea struck him. Freeing himself would only end up with a fight between the two of them..a fight he wasn't too sure of winning. Mimori could be overcome only by number..and he had a plan. The key was the grudge spirit still in his hand..

Taking a deep breath, he stopped struggling and started to concentrate on imbibing some of his powers into the grudge spirit. "Well Mimori..", he said with a smile, trying to buy time. "Why this sudden change in attitude? I had you swooning in my arms a couple of hours ago.."

The triumphant smile on Mimori's face vanished, to be replaced by a look of absolute hate and loathing. "Did you think, ", she hissed, "that after suffering heart-break from a one night stand, I wouldn't be able to resist another? I'll admit..you are pretty skilled..but _I_ am more experienced!"

"Good for you!", Reino replied mockingly. "And I'm guessing that one night stand was with Sho Fuwa?"

At the sound of Sho's name, Mimori's eyes softened immediately, a sad smile on her lips. "Sho..", she sighed lovingly. "Such a talented young singer..so handsome..the prince of my dreams.."

"He broke your heart?", Reino suggested sarcastically. Mimori glared at him and with a slashing motion of her hand, a diagonal gash appeared on Reino's cheek. _Just a little more_.., he thought grimly, gritting his teeth in pain.

"HE DID NOT BREAK MY HEART!", Mimori screeched, making him wish he had a couple of ear plugs. " There is only one person responsible for my death and that is Kyoko Mogami!"

She glared at him, her eyes flashing red. Reino could literally see the fire dancing in her eyes and decided to keep her talking before she struck again. "How so?", he hurried on, trying to inject a note of sympathy in his voice.

The room temperature dropped down several degrees, as pain clouded her face. "She stole his heart from me..", she whispered, her voice filled with anguish. "She never loved him, but he was obsessed with her. Even after he made love to me..he left me.."

Reino listened politely, as though he didn't know this story. The grudge Kyoko was not yet ready.

"I committed suicide…", she continued monotonously. "But I never really left. I still remember the morning after..Sho panicked when he saw my body. He rang up Kyo for help. Kyo arranged to have my body hidden and my contract with the agency cancelled. I'm not famous..I'm not rich..it was easy..no one would ever know I was missing..including my manager..Kyo cooked up a very convincing story about how I had decided to quit the industry.."

Reino was thankful she seemed to be in a talkative mood. She obviously wanted to make sure he didn't die ignorant. She was proud of what she had done..And she reveled in narrating the tale of her rise form death.

"But then that rat started to black mail Sho!", Mimori continued indignantly. "He had the nerve to record our private moments and threatened to release the tape, and make it look as though I was raped!

His conditions were simple- Sho's latest songs, in return for Kyo's silence! Can you believe his nerve? Black-mailing the man who gave him his break? I decided to give Kyo a dose of his own medicine! I found out about his affair with a married woman. Being a ghost has it's perks you know..I was able to record one of their nights together and started to blackmail _him_! A confession on live TV-in return for my silence.."

Mimori paused, her lips curling up into an insane smile. "He was positively terrified when he recognized my voice. He thought I was still alive and would get him arrested. But that would be too easy for that pitiful ass.. I forced him to confess and sent the tape to Hana anyway! But the little idiot was going to spill the beans on me! So I appeared before him on the set that night..He got the shock of his life when I suddenly appeared right before him! He knew then you see, that I wasn't human. I took firm holfd of bis hand and strangled him! All I had to take care of now..was Kyoko Mogami…I wanted to wreck havoc on the one who stole away the one I loved! She had everything I dreamt of..Fame..money..love..a successful career..couldn't she leave something for me?

As luck would have it, she moved into the very apartment I was murdered. There is something delicious about tormenting your enemy in the place you died, isn't it?", she turned to him innocently. "I made sure she didn't have a moment of peace..I injured Ren Tsuruga, not enough to kill him though..Not yet..But I will kill him soon..let Kyoko suffer slowly in prison, watching her love die, and not being able to do anything..and then,", she clapped her hands with child-like glee, "I'll kill hi-"

Mimori's eyes widened when Reino got up suddenly, snapping away the invisible bindings. He stood impressively before her, radiating power and an aura of menace. Instinctively, Mimori raised her hand, but this time, he was ready for her.

He stepped forward and swiftly grabbed a fistful of her hair. He lifted her up roughly and began swinging her round and round with her hair like a cowboy lassoing a rope. Mimori screamed angrily, flinging her hands around, unable to free herself as she got dizzier and dizzier. Suddenly, Reino let go off her hair and Mimori was flung across the room.

She got up, walking unsteadily towards him, arms outstretched. "You..", she said venomously. She curled her hands like a cat, making the air crackle with electricity and sending waves of the deadly energy towards Reino.

He deflected it nonchalantly and suddenly flung something small towards her. Mimori's eyes widened in surprise when she realized it was the grudge spirit she had been holding captive. But the grudge spirit no longer was in it's earlier pitiful state. It was energized and crackling with energy. Reino's energy..

On the way, the grudge spirit split up into two..then fity and soon a million..before pelting down on Mimori, She screamed with agony, as the spirits penetrated her body like a million bullets. She had never expected to feel pain like this after death..

Taking advantage of her momentary distraction, Reino took of his necklace and pounced on the cowering Mimori. He wound the chain tightly around her neck, making her cough..and finally wither into a wisp of smoke, which he trapped in the pearls.

He got up slowly, breathing hard, and exhausted from the ordeal. Mimori was safely trapped within the necklace, but there were still a few things he needed to take care of first.. The tape recording Mimori ans Sho's one night stand, followed by her suicide. He needed it to show the police. Mimori would probably know about it..

Reino glanced at the chain of pearls, and bit back a groan as he realized he would have to let out Mimori again to question her. "Stay with me a while longer okay?", he told the grudge spirits grimly.

* * *

**A/N: I'll be having the epilogue out in a day or two. I didn't plan on stretching the ghost business for long.. **


	10. Epilogue

**Letter to Kyoko..one day after Reino's victory..**

_To my dearest and most favorite toy in the world…Kyoko,_

_I believe by now Ren Tsuruga is well on the path to recovery. And all thanks to whom? Your extremely useful, yet highly misunderstood manager of course! Or rather I should say, ex-manager? Because I have resigned from LME now. I can already imagine Lory Takarada's bewildered face as he slowly comes to his senses, wondering what my appointment and resignation letters are doing in his office!_

_I had so many plans Kyoko..Plans for my happiness and future..Our future actually. Everything would have gone according to plan if it hadn't been for that stupid ghost! But of course, you don't know yet who the little terrorist was! Well let me reveal how I, Reino, not only single-handedly captured that evil spirit, but also made the supreme sacrifice for your happiness.._

_The spirit was Mimori. She committed suicide a month ago, thanks to heart-break suffered in the hands of Sho Fuwa. She's in my custody now. I plan to disillusion her of her rainbow image of Fuwa and then she can join the rest of my women spirits. I have to admit, so far she was the best in bed.. ;)_

_I really wish you will one day regret that you spurned my advances honey, and realize that only you are fit to share a bed with me, rather than some spirit. But even I cannot convince myself that, that will truly happen. You are stupidly in love with that young beast..so much so, that I do not regret sending him to your apartment. My only regret is that Mimori failed to finish him off immediately.._

_Well, I managed to get hold off a tape that will ruin Fuwa..Oh yes..I still have my grudges against him. Mimori was a stupid young woman but she suffered too much. She was too young to die and she didn't deserve what Fuwa did to her. I intend to get her justice by sending that tape to the press( Deja-vu, anyone?), after a little editing of course. Watch out for the latest news on 'Tokyo Tabloid' tomorrow!_

_Speaking of grudges, I have enclosed your grudge spirit in the little box which came with this letter. Of course, it's no longer the same before you lost it. I had to give it some of my powers to defeat Mimori with it's help. You can have it now, though I would have loved to keep a cute little thing like that! Let's say, from now on, we'll share a spiritual connection._

_I don't think you'll be hearing from me ever again. I'm on the run now! I went to the police station yesterday and beautifully confessed to having attacked Ren Tsuruga and framing you before that. I had to be a little more convincing, so I grabbed a gun from one of the guards and shot the officer in the leg! That should slow him down!_

_You'll probably find me in the news as well soon. I can already see the headlines-'Vie Ghoul's vocalist on the run for Ren Tsuruga's attempted murder.' Well, my life is a lot more exciting now than it was before. And I'm not alone! My spirits keep me company._

_Au revoir my dear..hopefully? I asked myself a question before and I'll ask it again, only to you. My original intention of becoming your manager had been to steal you away..But saving you from that spirit..saving Ren Tsuruga..I only managed to bring you too back together. What the hell was I doing playing cupid?!_

_Be safe Kyoko-chan! You are a beautiful and famous young woman, dating Japan's most Desirable man. Be safe..and I hate to say this..remain in love..even though it will never be me.._

_I was, and will always remain,_

_The Bold, Bad Villain Of your Life,_

_Reino._

* * *

Kyoko folded the paper with a sigh. "He really did love you..", Ren said gently, putting his arm around her waist and giving her a squeeze.

"But he was partly responsible for your injuries..", she mumbled, burying her face aginst his chest. "he may have saved me..but I can't forgive him ever..And I hate the fact that in a way, I owe him one.."

"Kyoko,", Ren said suddenly after a few moments of silence. "Next time someone hurts you, or threatens you, just remember I'll always be there for you okay? Don't hide it from me..Even if they threaten to hurt me. We're going to be married Kyoko. We're going to be sharing our lives. If you're going to get hurt, I'm getting hurt with you..If you were to..to die, then I'm dying with you."

Kyoko looked up at him, her eyes bright as she fought back the tears. She put her arms around him and kissed him with all the love and passion that burned for him in her heart. "I love you..", he murmured against her lips.

Kyoko smiled as she looked down at the ring that was back in her finger. The crack was gone..And so were the scars..

They were safe.

* * *

**A/N: I finally finished this! My first, and probably last horror fanfic! I look forward to writing more fanfics! (never realized writing could be so addictive!) Anyway, please review and let me know what you think**!


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